


A Skating Scholarship

by alipiee



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime), yuri on ice
Genre: AU, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, College, College AU, Fluff, High School, High School AU, Hurt!Yuuri, Jealous, Jealous!Yuri, Jealousy, M/M, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, Pining victor, Victuri, Vikturi, Yoi - Freeform, Yuri, Yuri on Ice - Freeform, Yuri on Ice AU, Yurio, hurt!yuri, jealous!Viktor, jealous!victor, jealous!yuuri, katsuki - Freeform, nikiforov, phichit is their number one fan, victurri, viktor is trying his best, viktuuri, yoi au, yuri is very awkward and shy but I love him with all my heart I would literally die for him, yuuri - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-02
Updated: 2017-02-18
Packaged: 2018-09-21 11:15:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 35,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9546425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alipiee/pseuds/alipiee
Summary: After turning 17 and being offered a scholarship in Detroit, Yuuri packs his bags and moves across the world to pursue his skating.He can't help but find the second-year student Viktor Nikiforov fascinating and his roommate helps him to find out more.(In which Phichit and Yuuri are roommates and he has a hopeless crush on Viktor)





	1. "It's not a crush!"

**Author's Note:**

> Ok wow I am trash for school/college aus and I've been thinking about doing this for a while, so this is the product of procrastinating my physics revision for several hours. 
> 
> Ok so a little bit of background bc this does not follow canon at all oops 
> 
> So:
> 
> Phichit is 17  
> Yuuri is 17  
> Viktor is 18 
> 
> All three of them are there on scholarships but Viktor started the previous year.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

"Phichit come on, we're going to be late!"

Yuuri was frantically running around their dorm room, throwing a scarf around his neck as he called for his roommate to hurry up.

"Yuuri, this little crush of yours is getting out hand." The Thai boy shook his head with a chuckle as he pulled his sneakers on and began to tie the laces.

"I-it's not a crush," Yuuri insisted with wide eyes, quickly turning to face his best friend who had an amused smirk plastered on his face, "I just think he's a great skater." 

"Mhm, sure." He winked, pulling his jacket on and smiled as he noticed that Yuuri's cheeks were becoming redder by the second.

The two of them finally left the room, locking the door on the way out and made their way to the ice rink on their campus; Yuuri had taken and interest in ice skating when he was younger, using it as a way to relieve stress and help him think, so when he got an offer for a scholarship in Detroit, he quickly packed his things and moved in with Phichit, a friend he had made online many years ago.

There was no denying that Viktor amazed Yuuri, ever since he saw him performing on his first day of college, he had been blown away and wanted to try and catch up to him. He was only one year older so it wasn't out of the question and he was going to make it his goal to get to the same level.

The two boys entered the rink and Phichit made sure that he found seats together close to the front so that Yuuri could have a good view of his new idol. He was grinning as Viktor's name was announced and the small crowd began cheering, hormonal teenage girls screaming excitedly; he was only eighteen and had attended this small college for just over a year, but he had already grabbed the attention of many people and his coach even said that the media would soon discover him too.

Suddenly the room fell silent as the music began to play and the teenager began to skate to the slow music; Yuuri could feel his heart pounding against his chest and he felt warm inside, so unbelievably drawn in by the silver-haired boy and he couldn't stop himself from grinning as he noticed how effortless he made everything look. He had done enough of those jumps himself to know how difficult they were to land, and yet Viktor showed no signs of struggle and it was second nature to him now. 

His skates glided gracefully and silently against the ice, and the Japanese boy rested his hands on the metal railing in front of their seats, resting his chin on the palm of his hand and Phichit laughed softly at his infatuation. Yuuri's eyes never left Viktor for even a split second, intently taking in every movement he made, every expression he made, wanting to know more, wanting to see more. 

Finally he was in his ending position and the crowd erupted once again, causing a wide smile to appear Viktor's face as he bowed humbly and blew a kiss towards the girls who were screaming his name. Yuuri couldn't help but roll his eyes, he was still so young and yet practically half of the girls at their college had a crush on him, he couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy at the way he had responded to them but he knew it was stupid, after all why would Viktor ever bother with someone like him?

Shaking it off, he turned to Phichit and grabbed him by the shoulders, shaking him slightly, "Did see that? Wasn't he incredible! The way he landed his salchow- and the quadruple flip! Not to mention the-"

"-yes Yuuri, I know," Phichit cut him off with a chuckle, wanting him to calm down from his over excited state, "I was watching too, you know."

Yuuri's smile faltered slightly and an he bit his lip in embarrassment, putting his head in his hands, "Yeah...sorry." 

"Don't apologise, its cute. Although I hope your crush doesn't turn into an obsession, because then we might have a problem on our hands." He teased, nudging the brunette with his elbow, loving the reactions he got from him when he wound him up.

"Ugh, Phichit, I just like his skating." Yuuri groaned, dragging his small hands down his face and adjusting his large glasses, not understanding why his best friend couldn't understand.

"Whatever," he just rolled his eyes in amusement, before continuing to push his buttons, "do you want to go now that you've seen your boyfriend perform?"

"Fuck off, he's not my boyfriend." Yuuri just laughed, knocking him with his shoulder, slightly embarrassed that the people around them had heard and not wanting rumours to start, "but yeah, lets go and get something to eat."

-

"Can I have some Katsudon please?" Yuuri smiled kindly at the waitress who jotted down his order happily and turned to face Phichit, who asked for the same, not very familiar with Japanese food.

"Thanks for finding this place," The brown eyed boy smiled across the table, grateful that his friend was still trying to make him feel at home even after several months.

"No problem, I've always wanted to try more Japanese food." He took a sip of his drink, leaning back into his chair and staring out of the window; it was starting to get dark outside and he noticed the way the lights of the shops reflected against each other, sending variations of colours everywhere. 

"What're you looking at?" Yuuri asked with a puzzled look, but Phichit just shook his head and changed the subject, not finding it interesting enough to mention.

"Did you do the calculus homework?" He asked, looking hopefully at him and he nodded blankly.

"Why? Do you need help with it?" He questioned and the tanned-skin boy nodded, scrunching his eyebrows.

"Yeah I just can't get the hang of it, I wish we could just skate all the time rather than doing stupid lessons." He let out a groan and placed his head on the table dramatically, much to Yuuri's amusement.

"Me too," he agreed, patting his friend's head sympathetically, "but we need to keep everything in balance for the future, it's not enough to rely on skating."

"Ugh, I know." he sighed in defeat, bringing his head back up and placing his chin on his hand, "Hey, Yuuri?"

"Mhm?" He offered him a warm smile as he sipped on his straw, waiting for him to continue.

"Can I tell you something, and will you promise not to laugh?" He asked hopefully, glancing his eyes between his roommate and the table apprehensively.

"Can't make any promises." He teased with a smile, resulting in Phichit playfully kicking him under the table with a laugh.

"I'm serious." He sharpened his gaze slightly and Yuuri no longer laughed, becoming completely serious and wanting to know what he was going to ask.

"Do you think I'm good enough at skating?" He blushed slightly and didn't meet Yuuri's wide eyes.

"Of course! Why would you ask that?" His features pulled together and confusion was written on his face as he placed his drink back onto the table in surprise.

"I have a dream, I really want to have an ice show in Thailand when I'm older; I want people to know how fun ice skating is." A nervous but excited smile was tugging at his lips and Yuuri's heart twisted happily, "Do you think I could do it?"

"Definitely! That would be amazing!" He enthusiastically assured him leaning closer on the table to show his interest, "What're you going call it?" 

"I was thinking 'Phichit on Ice', you know like the program you made to get into the scholarship." He suggested shyly, hoping that he would approve, "You always encouraged me to skate and you're probably the closest friend I've had, so I want to be reminded of it all the time." 

Yuuri's jaw ached from smiling so much and his eyes scrunched up as he grinned at his best friend, "Phichit that is the cutest thing ever, I love it!" 

"I'm glad you like it." A small blush was creeping on his cheeks and the two smiled at each other until their food came a moment later and they eagerly dug in.

-

The pair returned to their dorm room shortly after in high spirits and giggles, passing many people on their way who gave them quizzical looks but they just shrugged it off, enjoying each other's company. 

"I'm gonna go shower." Phichit informed him as they entered the room, throwing his jacket on his bed before locking the door to the bathroom. 

Yuuri kicked his shoes off and flopped onto his bed, pulling his phone from his pocket and checking Instagram, hoping that someone had posted photos of Viktor's performance. He clicked on his recently searched accounts and selected his name, refreshing his tagged photos and smiled as new ones popped up.

He scrolled through them, taking his time to notice every small detail and found his stomach feeling warm as he took in his beauty. How was it possible to be that attractive? There was not a single photo where he looked anything less than perfect and he groaned in frustration, not being able to fathom that he was a real person - a person that attended the same college as him.

He wondered if Viktor had ever noticed him, they were both there on a skating scholarship after all, except being in different years meant that their practice sessions rarely overlapped so he doubted it. He dared himself to imagine it nevertheless, picturing the silver-haired boy standing at the edge of the rink and watching him skate with a smile on his face.

He shook his head, dismissing the thought, he was way out of his league and he was pretty sure he was straight so he was just torturing himself. Sighing in defeat, he locked his phone and stared at the ceiling, feeling downhearted. 

The click of the bathroom door echoed in the room and Phichit entered in his colourful hamster pyjamas and a laugh escaped Yuuri's lips at how innocent he was. 

"Hey, don't laugh." He fake-pouted, throwing the towel from his head at his roommate and he apologised with a smile, offering a compliment instead and returning the towel.

"Looking forward to practice tomorrow?" He asked, sitting on the edge of the bed and rubbing his wet hair with the white fabric. 

"Yeah." He replied truthfully, the painfully long hours of maths, science and english were all worth it when he got to put his skates on and feel free on the ice once again and each time was just as exciting as the last.

"I think the second years are straight before us so you might catch a glimpse of Viktor on the way." He winked and Yuuri frowned, after reminding himself that it was useless to have this stupid crush because it wasn't going to get him anywhere.

"You're talking about it like I'm an obsessed stalker or something." He groaned, burying his head in his pillow and hiding his face behind his hands in frustration; he wasn't annoyed with Phichit, he was annoyed at himself for being so hung up over a boy who probably didn't even know he existed.

"You know I'm just teasing you." Phichit sat beside him on his bed, prodding his side and successfully receiving a reflexive giggle, not wanting to upset his best friend.

"Yeah, I know." He rolled his eyes and removed his hands, smiling up at the Thai boy, "Now go away I want to sleep."

"Wow, I'm wounded." He feigned hurt as Yuuri pushed him off his bed mischievously and he landed on the floor with a thud. 

The brunette faked an apologetic look and began to strip, pulling his soft pyjamas on; the two of them were like brothers now and felt completely comfortable around each other but Phichit still looked away to give him privacy.

"Goodnight Yuuri." He smiled as they both climbed into their beds and he reached over to turn the lamp off, leaving them in a comfortable darkness.

"Goodnight Phichit." 

-

"Wake the fuck up." 

Yuuri was rudely awoken by a pillow being thrown at his face and he let out a groan, sleepily sitting up with a look of annoyance on his face.

"Turn your alarm of for goodness sake it's doing my head in." 

In his dazed state, he had barely registered the buzz coming from his beside table and he fumbled for his glasses, yawning as he placed them on his face and grabbed his phone, silencing its incessant buzzing.

"Finally." Phichit sighed in relief and sat up, ruffling his messy hair and placing a hand over his mouth as he let out a long yawn. 

"Sorry." He blushed, feeling bad for not ending it sooner, but his friend just insisted it was okay and Yuuri lazily padded to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

He knew it was stupid, but he remembered what his roommate had said the previous night about the possibility of seeing Viktor and he wanted to look nice just in case; maybe if he looked good he would notice him. It was silly and ridiculous, but he couldn't help himself and he washed his hair more thoroughly than usual and used lots of soap to clean himself so that he would smell nice too.

As he carefully picked out his outfit and sprayed slightly more aftershave that he normally did, Phichit raised an eyebrow but he ignored not wanting to endure more teasing and thankfully he didn't say anything about it.

Soon enough they were pulling their bags over their shoulders and making their way to the ice rink excitedly; as they approached the building, Yuuri felt an uncomfortable feeling and excused himself to go to the bathroom before they had to start their session and Phichit nodded, deciding to get his skates on while he waited.

In his rush to the bathroom, he didn't notice the group of people heading towards him and he clumsily bumped into one of them, sending them both onto the floor. 

"I'm sorry!" He said quickly, pushing himself to his feet and holding his hand out to the boy in front of him; he didn't recognise him but he could tell that he was slightly older and realised that he was probably one of the second year skaters.

"No worries," he smiled, taking Yuuri's hand before brushing himself off, turning his attention to him "are you alright?" 

Yuuri nodded quickly, feeling embarrassed that he had knocked someone over and he could feel his face heating up as he heard the boy's friends snickering beside them. 

"Shut up guys it's not a big deal." He rolled his eyes at their immaturity and Yuuri glanced over, although luckily he didn't recognise any of them either and he was grateful that Viktor had not witnessed this embarrassing experience.

"My name is Chris." He smiled warmly, shaking the Japanese boy's hand in a friendly manner.

"Yuuri." He replied, feeling relieved at how calm and nice he was being to him moments after being knocked to the ground.

"I'll see you around, Yuuri." He gave a small wave before becoming engrossed in a conversation with the older boys and he finally headed into the bathroom.

-

"Yes Yuuri!" Phichit cheered as he landed his toe loop perfectly and the he grinned happily at his achievement, receiving a high-five.

They had been practising for two hours and he had been focusing on nothing but his toe loops, wanting to get it right and improve his accuracy; Phichit had been watching him carefully, trying to pinpoint any slight errors that he could spot so Yuuri would know what he needed to fix to get it right and and it had finally paid off. 

Their coach had given them free time to practise whatever they felt they needed to work on and they were grateful for the freedom to make their own decisions regarding their skating. 

Yuuri returned the favour for his friend and after a few more hours they were both exhausted and had aching legs, taking it as a sign to call it a day after getting approval from coach Celestino.

They eagerly headed to one of the canteens within the main university building and filled their trays hungrily; glancing around the room, they sighed as they noticed that there wasn't anywhere to sit, only a few seats here and there but they didn't want to sit too close to any groups and take up other people's places.

"Yuuri!"

He whipped his head around at the sound of his name being called and he made eye contact with the guy from earlier who was smiling at gesturing for him to sit with them.

He looked at Phichit apprehensively but he just shrugged and the two of them headed over and took the free seats and the end of the table.

"Who's your friend?" Chris asked, smiling at the Thai boy and Phichit introduced himself with a grin, earning a warm welcome before everyone returned to their conversations.

"Fuck me." 

Yuuri recognised the Russian accent and felt his heart rate increase, he hadn't even noticed that Viktor was sat at the table and Phichit nudged him with a wink.

"I'm sure you'd be happy to volunteer." He whispered and received a jab to his ribs as Yuuri bit his lip, trying to remain cool.

"What's wrong?" One of the other second years asked, taking a sip of her drink and twirling a piece of hair between her fingers.

"This stupid homework, I can't do Calculus to save my life." He laughed, although there was a tinge of frustration in his voice and Phichit's ears perked up.

"You're on your own, sorry we all dropped it." A voice said and there was a murmur of agreement, everyone continuing to eat their lunch and dismiss his issue. 

Phichit smirked at Yuuri and cleared his throat, the Japanese boy could feel his heart thumping nervously as he knew what was about to happen and he nudged him under the table with wide eyes, silently begging him not to.

"Yuuri's getting straight A's in calculus, I'm sure he could help. I know we're only doing first year work but how different could it be?" 

Yuuri's brown eyes snapped up and he was met by Viktor's soft blue ones from a few seats down the table and he could feel his heart pounding as he received a hopeful smile. 

"Do you think you could help?" He questioned, and he found himself nodding before he could even register what was going on. 

"Hey, Phichit, swap places with me?" Viktor asked and Yuuri tensed, his eyes widening but his roommate just laughed and happily complied, heading to the other side of the table.

A few seconds later the Russian was sitting beside him, handing him the paper and explaining which part he was stuck on. It wasn't difficult, it was quite simple really and would only take Yuuri a few minutes to solve but the warmth of the other boy beside him was sending shivers down his spine and he was so nervous that he couldn't think.

"Do you have a pen?" He finally asked after finding his voice and Viktor nodded, handing him the one he was holding and Yuuri cringed at the way his hand was shaking nervously as he tried to write.

Not wanting him to notice, he pulled his hand away for a moment, pretending that he was thinking about it and tried to slow down his breathing. After a few moments he felt himself feel slightly calmer and began to write again, explaining what he was doing to Viktor as he scribbled on the page.

He glanced over at the Russian boy who was resting his chin on his hand and watching him intently, taking in every word he said and trying to wrap his head around the concepts he was explaining.

"Does that make sense?" He asked nervously, placing the pen back onto the sheet and sliding it towards him. 

"Kind of, it makes more sense now that you've explained it but I'm still not 100% on how to do it." He sighed, placing his head in his hands in frustration.

"I'm sure you'll get the hang of it," Yuuri assured him encouragingly, receiving a smile that made his heart jump and the silver haired boy wrapped an arm around his shoulder and gave him a brief hug before pulling away.

"Thanks, Yuuri." 

He had never particularly been a fan of the subject, but if it meant that he could help Viktor he would consider doing calculus more often, given the way his heart was doing somersaults at the gratitude he received.

"No worries," he said cooly, licking his lips and forcing himself to continue with a casual shrug, "I'm happy to help if you have any more you're stuck on." 

"Really?" Viktor's eyes lit up and he flipped the page, revealing several more questions which he had drawn question marks on and he felt a pang in his chest. He wanted to help, but he didn't want to be used just for his homework and his smile faded slightly.

"Sorry! Obviously you don't have to do them all now!" Viktor realised how rude he seemed and apologised quickly, "I could give you my number and we could meet up sometime? I'll even buy you coffee, or tea, or whatever you like."

Yuuri knew that it wasn't a date and that it didn't mean Viktor liked him, but he couldn't ignore the excitement that it sparked within him and he nodded.

"Sure, coffee sounds good." His voice remained cool but inside he felt extremely giddy and he was quite worried that his chest was going to explode due to how fast his heart was beating.

Viktor shoved his papers back into his bag and Yuuri assumed that he was going to move back to his normal seat after his usefulness had ended, but he made no move to, remaining beside him and stealing a chip from his plate with a playful smirk.

"Rude." He giggled, but gently moved his plate closer as a subtle sign that he could help himself before taking a forkful of his noodles and eagerly eating them, noticing the way his stomach was growling slightly.

For some reason, it amazed Yuuri that Viktor was actually human, asking him questions and listening to his responses with genuine interest.

Suddenly the bell rang throughout the canteen and everyone began to make their way to classes, throwing their bags over their shoulders as they left the room.

"Yuuri, wait!" Viktor gently wrapped his around around his small wrist and tugged him back, "I never gave you my number." 

"Oh yeah, how are you going to get your homework done without me?" He jokingly laughed but Viktor frowned slightly, uncomfortable at the fact that he thought he was just using him, "It's not just for homework; I owe you a coffee, remember?"

The younger boy nodded and adjusted his glasses, digging his hand into his pocket and pulling out his phone, handing it to him shyly. Viktor's fingers typed his number quickly and saved himself as a contact before returning the phone and heading to class.

"See you soon!" He called over his shoulder as he opened the door and Yuuri stood there with a stupid smile on his face, completely forgetting that he had his own class to get to until Phichit re entered the room and shouted him.


	2. Ok so it might be a crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Asdfghjk I'm trying to write this quickly bc I'm having so much fun doing it, so sorry if it's not very well written ^-^

The rest of his day passed in a blur, he was too busy thinking about Viktor to concentrate properly and got scolded by several teachers for zoning out but he didn't care today.

Once he finished his last class, he headed straight back to his room with Phichit and laid on his bed, staring up at the ceiling and giggling as he recounted his lunch time. 

"You're welcome." He chimed, grabbing Yuuri's attention and he looked up at him before quickly climbing up from his bed and embracing him in a tight hug.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" 

Phichit chuckled as he wrapped his arms around him, feeling happy for his friend; even if Viktor wasn't going to be romantically interested in Yuuri, at least they could now hold a conversation.

"What did he say when you texted him?" He asked curiously as the two of them pulled away from the hug but Yuuri just scrunched his eyebrows.

"I haven't texted him yet, was I supposed to?" His eyes widened and he began to panic, would Viktor be annoyed for taking so long?

"Nah, I just assumed that you would've done it the second you got the chance, but this is good I guess you're playing hard-to-get."

Honestly, Phichit didn't know which was the best approach Yuuri should have taken towards texting Viktor; a part of him thought that he would be the kind of guy who would text back straight away and be excited go continue his conversation with Yuuri; another part of him was worried he might just want him when he needs to do his homework and the Japanese boy would get on his nerves.

"I think you should wait a little longer, if he wants to text you back and keep talking the he'll make the effort and appreciate it more when you do; besides, if you make him wait he'll never suspect your undying love for him."

"Shut up." He groaned, shoving him slightly, "I don't have an undying love for him, I just think he's attractive and he's a great athlete."

Phichit shrugged, at least he had finally admitted he found him attractive and no longer insisted it was only his skating ability. 

"Should I text him yet?" Yuuri asked asked as he fidgeted with his phone, unlocking and locking it mindlessly to give him a distraction.

"It's literally been less than a minute." He laughed and his friend just looked up with a smirk but remained silent.

"How about now?"

"This is going to be a long night." He groaned, flopping onto his bed and pulling his own phone out and searching for something to post on Instagram.

He smiled as he found a selfie he had taken with Yuuri a few weeks ago; they both looked good and he selected it, quickly typing a witty caption and tagging Yuuri before pressing the post button.

He received many likes as usual, not taking notice of them but then one name appeared and he grinned as another notification popped up that he had a new follower.

It only took a moment before Yuuri sat up on his bed with a surprised look on his face and glanced at him.

"Viktor followed me! How did he find my account?" Phichit shook his head at how little the brown-eyed boy knew about Instagram and rolled his eyes before beginning to explain.

"Well lots of people he follows liked my picture so it came up on his explore page, and you're tagged in the photo so he just clicked your name; simple really."

Yuuri's phone vibrated in his hands and he opened his DMs, his eyes widening as he saw who it was from.

 

From: v-nikiforov 

Were you planning on actually texting me any time soon Mr Katsuki? 

 

"Phichit!" Yuuri threw his phone at him, "What do I do? Can I just ignore it?"

"No, he can see that you've read it; calm down and just text him back."

"Of course, of course." He slapped a hand to his face, "What do I say?"

"Let me help you." He picked up the phone that was laying on his bed and began typing for him while he peered over his shoulder nervously. 

 

From: Yuuri-Katsuki

Didn't realise you'd be waiting ;)

 

"Don't put the winky face!" He yelled, snatching his phone and backspacing it, "This looks much better now, it looks casual."

Yuuri nodded and sent the message before biting his nails anxiously as he saw the three dots appear and knew that he was about to receive a response.

 

From: v-nikiforov 

Of course, I was hoping you could keep me entertained during my biology class ;) 

it dragged so much :/

 

Yuuri froze as he saw the winky face, was he flirting with him? Was Viktor Nikiforov really flirting with him? His phone buzzed and he felt slightly disappointed as his thoughts were dismissed quickly.

 

From: v-nikiforov 

:)* oops sorry 

 

"Damn," Phichit tutted, and Yuuri frowned, a small part of him was slightly relieved though because he wasn't sure if he would be able to handle being flirted with; he had zero experience when it came to it and he knew he would be terrible and put him off.

 

From: Yuuri-Katsuki

Sorry, I'll make it up to you with a donut or something sometime :)

 

From: v-nikiforov 

A donut?

 

From: Yuuri-Katsuki

Well you're already getting me coffee, I thought I should do the food  ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

 

From: v-nikiforov

I like your thinking :p so when're we getting this coffee anyway?

 

From: Yuuri-Katsuki

You tell me :)

 

From: v-nikiforov 

Well when are you free?

 

Yuuri thought for a moment, when was he free? He could pretty much do it anytime that didn't clash with his classes or skating practise; he didn't want to tell Viktor that though because then he would think he didn't have a social life - which was slightly true but he didn't need to know that.

 

From: Yuuri-Katsuki

Friday?

 

He thought that it would be a good choice of day because all of their lessons would be finished so they should both be free.

 

From: v-nikiforov 

I'm free from about 4pm, what time do you want to go? :)

 

From: Yuuri-Katsuki 

Idk, like 5ish?

 

Yuuri technically didn't have any lessons on a Friday because it was his designated day to focus on skating so he could be free pretty much whenever he wanted, but Phichit always practised with him for hours and he wanted to leave time to shower and look nice - even if it was just coffee he wanted to make a good impression.

 

From: v-nikiforov 

Sounds good!

 

Yuuri didn't know what else he was supposed to say and felt the conversation dying and pouted, he found it so easy to message Viktor and he wanted to keep going.

He closed the app and opened his contacts instead, selecting his name and typing a message, hoping that if he switched to texting he could restart it.

 

To: Viktor

Hey, it's Yuuri (again) here's my number if you want it! :) 

 

The bad thing about texting was that he couldn't tell if he was typing a reply or not and he waited nervously, he didn't even need to reply to him; he could just save the number and not respond, leaving him waiting for a reply for hours.

Luckily, Viktor thought that it was appropriate to reply and his phone lit up a moment later with a new message awaiting him.

 

To: Yuuri

Hey! (Again) :p

 

He grinned as his fingers quickly typed, sending text after text to the Russian boy. It was several hours later when Phichit flicked the lamp off and told him to go to sleep and Yuuri gasped when he noticed the time. He had been so engrossed in his conservation that he had completely lost track of the time and sent a goodnight text before finally allowing himself to fall asleep, thoughts of the silver-haired boy occupying his mind. 

-

The next day dragged due to his lack of skating and the only thing that got him through it was the possibility of having another conversation with Viktor that night.

Surely enough, an hour or so after arriving home his phone vibrated on his bed and he eagerly responded, throwing his homework to the side and focusing all of his attention on the boy on the other side of his texts.

-

The days after were pretty much the same and it finally got to Friday so Phichit and Yuuri headed to the rink to practise for the day.

Despite them both being exhausted, they refused to stop, they loved skating and didn't mind the way it made them out of breath after hours of practising because the excitement and joy they got from it was more than worth it. 

Nevertheless, their coach insisted they stopped and ordered them to get off the ice before they got hurt and they finally agreed, liking the sound of taking their tightly laced skates off.

Glancing at the large clock on the wall, Yuuri quickly packed his stuff away and quickly made his way to his room to get ready. In his haste to get out of the rink he bumped into someone again and could only hope they were as understanding as Chris had been.

To his surprise, the person he had accidentally knocked to the floor was Viktor and the Japanese boy leaped up, helping the older athlete to his feet while a furious blush made its way to his cheeks.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't see you!" He repeated his apology several times, resulting in a laugh from Viktor. 

"It's fine, honestly, you can stop apologising, I should have moved out of the way." He placed a hand on Yuuri's shoulder to try and calm him down and assure him that it was okay.

"What're you doing here anyways?" He questioned with a raised eyebrow, Celestino had told him that the second years didn't have practise today and the two of them were supposed to be meeting in less than an hour, was he going to stand him up? Had this all been a big joke all along? 

Yuuri's anxiety began to twist his thoughts and came up with endless negative explanations as to why he was here but he was finally snapped out of when he began to explain.

"Oh, my coach wanted to speak to me," he shrugged casually before smiling at Yuuri happily, "your skating is great by the way! I knew I recognised you from somewhere but I couldn't place it until now; I saw you around the rink a lot in the first month of the semester."

He didn't know what to say, he couldn't believe that Viktor had noticed him after all and now he was complimenting him; sure, many people had said his skating was great but none of those times compared to how he felt now, seeing the way those blue eyes were crinkled as he smiled genuinely at him.

"Thank you." His whole body felt warm and his heart rate was increasing, he tried to switch the attention to Viktor rather than himself, "Still not as good as you though."

"Don't be silly, your step sequence is fantastic!" He exclaimed, honestly meaning it and Yuuri's cheeks were quickly becoming flushed from the amount of compliments he was receiving and he mumbled another humble "thank you".

"Hey, wanna go get that coffee now?" Viktor suggested, glancing at his watch and Yuuri bit his lip in thought.

"I kinda wanted to shower and stuff, I've been at practice all day." He admitted awkwardly, hoping that the Russian boy would understand.

"Oh, yeah of course! Do you want to just meet up later?" He asked and if he was honest, Yuuri felt embarrassed that he was leaving just to see him again later; he knew that second year accommodation was usually several miles away from the campus so he would have a long way to go, whereas his dorm was only a five minute walk.

"I don't mind, I won't be long so if you wanted to wait in my dorm for like ten minutes we could go from there? You don't have to! It's just I didn't think you'd want to have to come all the way back." He knew that he was rambling but he couldn't stop himself and Viktor finally cut him off by accepting his offer gratefully.

-

"Sorry it's a little messy." Yuuri cringed slightly as he opened the door and noticed the way Phichit's side of the room had items scattered everywhere; luckily he had kept his own half neat and he didn't have anything embarrassing on show so he grabbed some clothes from his wardrobe and headed into the bathroom after telling Viktor to make himself comfortable. 

Throughout his shower, all he could focus on was the fact that the boy he'd had a crush on for several months was sitting on his bed; he began to frantically think about his belongings and internally prayed that he didn't have anything that Viktor would find strange or off-putting.

Rushing through his routine, he rinsed the shampoo from his hair quickly and turned the taps off, drying himself and putting on his outfit. The navy skinny jeans he had chosen were pretty tight, but he didn't mind because they showed off the leg muscles he had gained from his many years of skating and made him feel confident; he slipped his black and white striped top over his toned torso and rubbed off some of the condensation from the mirror and put his glasses back on, happy with his appearance.

Grabbing a towel, he began to rub his hair as he left the bathroom and searched for the hairdryer.

"That was fast." Viktor commented, glancing up from his phone and smiling at the way his hair was sticking in all different directions after removing the towel.

Yuuri noticed what he was staring at straight away and began to try and flatten it down, "Does it look that bad?" 

"Nah, it looks cute." Viktor shrugged casually, before returning to his phone as if it was a completely normal thing to say; maybe it was, maybe Yuuri was overthinking it, after all Phichit has said similar things to him in the past - but that was different, they were best friends and had always complimented each other.

Not wanting to dwell on the thought, he shook his head and finally found the hair dryer, plugging it in and running his hands through his damp hair, wanting it to be dry as quickly as possible so they could leave. 

After a few minutes he decided it was dry enough and flicked the switch off, brushing his hair and styling it back with a small amount of gel rather than having his fringe hanging over his eyes.

"Ready?" He asked and Viktor nodded, rising to his feet and heading to the door to slip his shoes on while Yuuri did the same and pulled his jacket on.

-

The coffee was great, Yuuri had never particularly been someone who drank it frequently, but he could recognise a good cup, and this was one of them.

"Mmmm. Thank you." He hummed in gratitude as he licked his lips, enjoying the taste and Viktor just chuckled as the cream stuck to Yuuri's lip without him noticing. 

He grabbed a napkin and wiped it away for him, giggling at the way his cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

The two of them had been sat in a small booth at a local café for two hours and they were yet to do a single one of Viktor's calculus questions. Yuuri had began the conversation by asking him what Russia was like and what his family was like, wanting to know anything and everything about him; every word he spoke just drew him in more and he felt himself getting deeper and deeper into the hole that held his feelings for him but he didn't care. He was fascinating and he wanted to learn more, but after telling several stories Viktor felt as though he had been taking too much of the attention and shifted the focus to Yuuri instead.

He received pretty much the same questions, although his answers were far more brief, feeling as though he was not interesting enough and he would bore him. He could tell that this wasn't the case though as he noticed the way Viktor was listening intently, his blue eyes piercing into him with genuine curiosity as he sipped his fourth cup of coffee. 

"An onsen, huh?" Viktor looked interested as he leaned his elbow on the table and offered a warm smile, "You'll have to show me it one day, it sounds cool." 

"Sure." Yuuri smiled, although the thought of sharing a very large bath with a very naked Viktor caused him to blush and he hid it by taking a large gulp of his coffee. Glancing at the clock, Yuuri widened his eyes as he realised how little time they had and he clicked the pen that was laying on the table and pulled the stack of sheets towards him. Viktor had informed him that they were actually due earlier that day, but his professor had given him an extension to have it on his desk by 7am tomorrow morning.

"Viktor, come on." Yuuri nudged him as he noticed that he wasn't paying attention and was drawing making patterns in his coffee with his stirrer; he sighed but shuffled closer nevertheless, knowing that he needed his help.

Yuuri quickly solved the question he was working on and looked up to see a very confused Viktor, who was staring at the page with knitted eyebrows, clearly not understanding any of it.

"Want me to go through it again?" Yuuri asked sweetly and the older boy nodded shyly, slightly embarrassed that he needed it explaining to him by a first-year. He guessed he didn't mind though, Yuuri was extremely patient with him and was not patronising in the slightest so he felt comfortable and was able to take his time and ensure he fully understood everything. 

"Oh!" After several more pages, his eyes lit up as his mind finally made the connections and he was handed the pen, scribbling down his notes as the younger boy watched with a smile, happy that he was able to help. 

"Is that right?" He asked, still not confident in his answer but when Yuuri nodded he sighed in relief, turning the page to the final question and beginning to solve it. It took him longer to do it on his own but after a few minutes of tapping the page in thought, he was able to finish it and he hugged Yuuri gratefully before closing the booklet and putting it back in his bag.

"Honestly, thank you so much! I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't helped me." He wrapped and arm around his shoulder and patted his back but the Japanese boy just smiled and gave a small shrug, insisting that it was fine.

"I would say that I'd return the favour, but I'm not very academic." He laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

"I'm sure you are!" He complimented, not wanting him to think badly of himself, "And you've already returned the favour by buying me coffee - three coffees in fact." He added with a chuckle, taking another sip of the hot drink in front of him.

"I guess, but you're still buying me a donut sometime right?" He smirked, licking his lips at the thought and Yuuri nodded quickly.

"Of course! I'll buy you three, that'll even it out a bit." He playfully joked, not being able to stop the smile that tugged at his lips as Viktor's eyes lit up.

"Hey, I have an idea!" He suddenly exclaimed excitedly and the younger boy leaned in slightly, motioning for him to continue, "So I'm not exactly a maths or science expert or whatever, but I could help you with your skating - not that you're bad! Just in case there's and jumps or anything you can't quite do yet. I'm not saying I can do everything! Just I thought I'd offer." 

The thought made Yuuri's heart beat a little faster and his smile grow a little larger and he nodded happily, "Sure, I'd love that! I could use some more practise on my salchows; I can never seem to land them properly."

"Well I'm more than happy to help as much as I can." He grinned, making eye contact with him as he spoke so that he knew his compliment was sincere, "You're already really talented so I'm sure you'll be able to pick it up quickly."

"Thank you." His cheeks began to flush once again and he glanced at his watch, noticing how late it was, "We should probably get going," 

"You're right." Viktor's eyes widened as he realised the time and the two of them rose to their feet, "I guess it's true that time flies when you're having fun."

"You think calculus is fun?" He scoffed, a confused laugh escaping his lips but he looked over and the Russian boy was smirking.

"No, talking to you was fun." 

He didn't know what to say to that so he just mumbled a "you too" and offered a warm smile before the two of them parted ways and went back to their rooms. 

-

"Yuuri!"

He was tackled to the ground seconds after entering the room and he winced as his head hit the hard floor and Phichit climbed on top of him.

"Ah sorry!" Phichit quickly apologised, but made no move to get off him as he pushed himself onto his elbows despite the body weight on top of him, "Tell me everything!"

"Okay, okay, but first get off me you weirdo." He chuckled, shoving the Thai boy from him and pushing himself to his feet.

The two of them sat cross-legged on his bed and he began to tell him all that happened, starting from when he bumped into him and he listened carefully with glistening eyes, extremely happy for him. Once he had finished he was embraced in a tight hug and he began repeating how amazing this was and he couldn't ignore the smile that was plastered on his face.

His phone buzzed on his bed and he quickly reached for it, opening the message and laying backwards with a large grin.

 

From: v-nikiforov 

Had a great time tonight, thanks once again! Let me know when you want help with your salchows O:)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will start writing the next chapter when I get home from school, I hope you're enjoying it so far :)


	3. An ever-developing crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah so I kinda changed how many chapters this story is going to have because I wanted to make it slightly longer and I wanted to publish this shorter chapter now but there's still lots of plot to cover so I hope that's okay :))

Taking a deep breath, Yuuri pulled his laces tighter and tied his skates securely as he waited nervously for Viktor's arrival at the ice rink.

The two of them had been meeting up every few days for the last few weeks, helping each other with different things and today was Viktor's turn to help Yuuri with his skating. Since he had been given advice and gone through it many, many times with him, Yuuri's salchow had dramatically improved, although it was still not perfect and he was determined to get it that way. 

"Yuuri!" He quickly turned his head to find the voice and spotted the Russian boy walking through the entrance with a large smile on his face. 

"Hey Viktor!" He rose to his feet, heading over to meet the silver haired man as he sat on a nearby bench and began to lace his own skates quickly. 

"I can't believe you got me here this early." He chuckled sleepily, glancing at the large clock on the wall as a yawn escaped his lips, "I'm usually still asleep at this time on a Saturday."

"Sorry." The Japanese boy blushed, turning his attention to the ground, feeling embarrassed that he had dragged him out here so early; nevertheless, the other boy just laughed, assuring him that it was fine and refreshing even.

"You ready?" He asked, standing up and holding out a hand for the brunette; Yuuri's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, wondering why on Earth he was being offered his hand. He took it nonetheless and assumed that Viktor was just trying to make sure that he wouldn't fall on their way to the ice, as though he was much younger than he was.

His suspicions seemed to be true when the contact broke as soon as their feet stepped onto the cold surface; the older skater began to warm himself up, skating along the outside of the rink while doing a few occasional moves and Yuuri followed him.

Once he finally they were ready, Viktor instructed Yuuri to show him his salchow while he watched and tried to help him perfect it. Despite having done this several times before, he couldn't help the nervousness he felt when he realised that every slight motion he made was being meticulously noted in Viktor's mind. The thought blared in his brain as he was about to jump, causing him to miss the landing and fall flat into the ice, grimacing at the harsh impact. 

"Are you alright?" Viktor instantly skated over, helping to lift him to his feet as he searched his eyes for any indication that the injury was more than superficial.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine thanks." Brushing himself off, Yuuri offered a warm smile in accompaniment to his flushed cheeks as it sunk in that Viktor Nikiforov had just seen him flop onto the ice. 

"Okay, good." He sighed lightly with relief and it made Yuuri's heart tighten at the thought that he actually cared about him, "Want to try it again?"

With a quick nod, he inhaled deeply and began skating once again, building up his speed before jumping into the air and turning gracefully, before landing the salchow with a satisfied smile.

"Fantastic!" He was quickly embraced in a warm hug that took him by surprise, but he relaxed into it and timidly wrapped his own arms around Viktor's slightly larger frame. "I knew you could do it!"

The two of them pulled away happily and the younger athlete began skating once again, wanting to land as many as he could while in this state of mind and improve his overall landing accuracy.

-

"Your stamina is insane." Viktor remarked in disbelief several hours later, his chin resting lazily on the palm of his hand as he sat on one of the benches and watched Yuuri skate effortlessly.

"Thanks?" He replied, a slight questioning tone in his voice as he was unsure whether or not it was a compliment or just an observation.

"You're sure you don't want to stop?" He asked apprehensively, looking at the large clock and realising that the brunette had been skating without a proper break for almost four hours now.

He finally stopped in his movements and looked thoughtful for a moment as he licked his lips. "Actually, a break sounds nice, I could really use some water."

"We could call it a day? I'm in the mood to go and grab some lunch." He suggested, noticing the way his stomach was beginning to growl at him from a lack of food.

"Oh yeah! Sure! Of course! Sorry!" Yuuri spoke quickly as he adjusted his glasses and made his way off the ice to untie his skates, feeling bad for making Viktor wait so long with him when he clearly wanted to leave.

"Don't worry about it, where do you want to go?" He questioned, his soft blue eyes staring into Yuuri's own kindly and he widened them considerably, not realising that he had meant he wanted to grab lunch together.

"I-I don't mind." He smiled shyly, unsure of where to suggest that would be appealing to the older athlete, "You can choose." 

"Well what kind of food do you like?" He asked, untying his jacket from his waist and pulling it over himself, ready to leave whenever Yuuri was.

"Anything, I'm not fussy." He assured him, wanting to go wherever Viktor decided but apparently his response was not helpful because he simply sighed and bit his lip in thought.

"You're Japanese right?" He questioned and Yuuri nodded with scrunched eyebrows, "Do you want to go to that Japanese restaurant? I've been meaning to try it but I've never actually been in yet." 

"Sure!" He grinned, remembering his visit with Phichit; he loved how relaxing and homely it felt compared to the rest of Detroit and he was excited to share his culture with Viktor.

"Let's go then." 

-

"So this is really your favourite meal?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow at the brown-eyed boy across the table, curiosity clear in his voice.

"Yeah, my mother used to make it for me often, it's incredible." He informed him, smiling at the fond memories but a small feeling of sadness tugged at his heart, missing his family but he just shrugged and made a mental note to ring them later.

"It looks delicious," he nodded, licking his lips and picking up the chopsticks before eagerly taking a bite. His tastebuds sang with pleasure and he moaned slightly at the different flavours, closing his eyes slightly as he fully tasted everything.

"Vkusno! This is amazing!" He exclaimed before quickly taking bite after bite and Yuuri couldn't stop the smile that was tugging at his lips.

"I'm glad you like it." He grinned, before hastily digging into his own, feeling the hunger surfacing after his many hours of practise.

"So how're you finding Detroit?" He asked, swallowing another tasty mouthful and taking a sip of his drink.

"What do you mean?" 

"Like, surely this place reminds you of Japan, do you miss it? I know I found it quite difficult to adjust from Russia in my first year here." He frowned slightly, clearly reflecting on his home country before returning his gaze to Yuuri expectantly.

"Well, yeah of course I miss it, I lived there for seventeen years, most of my memories are there," he was once again reminded of his family back home and found himself pouting subconsciously before shaking his head, "but I came here for a reason, and I've already made new memories and there so much opportunity and everyone has been so welcoming and warm the whole time, especially Phichit."

"Your boyfriend?" He asked casually and Yuuri's eyes widened instantly and he almost choked on his drink, coughing in surprise.

"No, no, no, Phichit is just my best friend." He laughed, although he didn't blame him for assuming, the two of them were incredibly close and they did seem as though they were dating sometimes - but it really was only platonic.

"Sorry." Viktor's cheeks had a tint of pinkness in them as he stared at the table, avoiding eye contact with him, "Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No. Of course not." Yuuri laughed comically, as if it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard and Viktor looked at him with confusion, not understanding why the idea was so out of the question.

"Why is that such a crazy thing to thin- oh." The confusion evaporated and he even had a small smile playing on his lips, "I see." 

Yuuri's heart began to beat quickly, had he really been that obvious? It wasn't as though he was embarrassed of his sexuality, in fact he was proud of it - he was just afraid in case Viktor had noticed his crush on him and would leave. 

"What about you?" Yuuri quickly shifted the focus of the conversation on the Russian boy, hating the attention he was receiving, "Do you have a girlfriend?" 

"Me? No." He played with the food in his bowl, resting his chin on his arm as though he was embarrassed to admit it and it didn't make sense to Yuuri.

"Why not? Practically half of the college has a crush on you." 

"How do you know?" He questioned and once again Yuuri thought he had stupidly given away his own crush on the skater but he just casually shrugged and played it off.

"It's kind of obvious." He wasn't sure whether or not Viktor was honestly unsure as to whether or not he had so many girls chasing him, or whether he was just slightly narcissistic and liked to be reminded of it but he said it nonetheless.

"I don't really want a girlfriend." He shrugged and continued to eat his food before it turned cold but Yuuri just simply couldn't understand why not; he could have almost anyone he wanted, all he had to do was say the word and they would be fawning over him 24/7 giving him as much love and attention as he craved.

"Why not?" 

"I want to focus on my skating for now," he stated simply and the Japanese boy understood; it was a difficult sport that required a lot of practise so whimsical relationships were not particularly ideal. Viktor licked his lips, as though he was internally debating whether or not to continue but the words came out anyway, "besides, girls aren't really my area." 

"Huh?" He was almost certain that he knew what the Russian was inferring, but he didn't want to jump to any conclusions so he pressed for him to explain. When he didn't reply and kept sipping his drink, Yuuri swallowed before daring to push further, "Then what exactly is your area?"

His blue eyes finally met his once again and he bit his lip before opening his mouth to begin to explain.

*BUZZ BUZZ* 

Before he had the chance to speak, a large vibration came from Viktor's jacket and he quickly scrambled to pull his phone from his pocket, answering the call without hesitation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah ok so I slightly pinched the last idea of girls "not being his area" from BBC Sherlock and as I was writing it I realised how gay that line actually is; like there is no heterosexual explanation for it so wow yeah (TJLC Confirmed guys)


	4. A stupid crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops sorry this took forever to update I'm super swamped at school but I finally got the chance to write although it's kinda short
> 
> (I keep thinking of new plot ideas so it's going to have 2/3 more chapters after this and it's going to have lots of angst bc I live off it - mainly jealous Viktor and jealous Yuuri and lots of miscommunication because who doesn't love dramatic irony?)
> 
> Don't worry it has a happy ending though <3

"Hello?" 

"Chris hi!" Viktor quickly rose to his feet and apologetically held up a finger to Yuuri to indicate that he would be back in a minute before heading outside to take the call.

He nodded and gave an understanding smile but he was confused, was Viktor about to admit to him that he was...gay? Surely not, he had never given any indications that he wasn't into women, had he? Maybe he misunderstood, maybe he simply just meant that he wasn't into relationships at all - or maybe he meant he wasn't very good at dating girls, maybe he wasn't as confident as he seemed, or maybe he was more of a one-time thing kind of guy.

There were too many thoughts rushing through his head and he let out a large sigh as he placed his head in his hands, he really didn't want to get his hopes up at the possibility of Viktor liking him back one day, but the way he was talking made it seem as though it could happen.

He wondered whether or not he should bring it back up once Viktor returned, feeling the need to know but he was afraid that he had jumped to a conclusion and would be completely wrong.

Swirling his drink with his straw absentmindedly, he bit his lip in thought, shifting his focus out of the window to see Viktor's figure standing in the cold with his phone pressed to his ear. 

After several minutes, he finally ended the call and made his way back into the restaurant, sighing with the warmth it brought. Yuuri noticed the way his lips were slightly upturned with a trace of a smile but he shook his head and it was gone, leaving him curious as to what Chris had said to him.

"Hi, sorry about that." Viktor apologised as he took his seat, avoiding the Japanese's boy's gaze for a moment, a small hint of pink on his cheeks; Yuuri dismissed it, assuming it was probably just from standing out in the cold.

"It's fine." He reassured him with a warm smile and took a sip of his drink, "Everything okay?"

He tried to coax the contents of their phone call out of Viktor with his innocent eyes and kind smile but he simply just nodded and returned the gesture.

"Yeah, of course." He licked his lips, taking a bite of his lunch that was now almost completely cold before glancing back up at Yuuri and clearing his throat. "Actually, he's having a party tonight and was wondering if I was still coming, do you want to come along?"

Yuuri noted that Viktor sounded almost slightly nervous and as he looked into the hopefulness of his blue eyes he wanted to accept the offer, but he had already promised Phichit they could have a movie marathon, and besides parties weren't really his thing.

"I'd love to," he began and Viktor's smile grew into a grin but quickly faltered as he finished his sentence, "but I already have plans, I'm sorry."

"Oh," the Russian's lips were subconsciously pouting and his eyebrows were pulled together in disappointment but he quickly returned to a neutral expression to hide it, "that's okay, you'll come to the next one though?" 

"Yeah, sure." He nodded, knowing that he couldn't turn down the offer twice, anyway it might be fun to go to a party with Viktor - although he would need to stay away from the alcohol, he had only drank once or twice before and he was the very definition of a lightweight.

"Okay, great!" 

-

"Yuuuuuri." Phichit whined, nudging him with his elbow, "Either turn your phone on silent or turn it off, that's the tenth time it's gone off in the last five minutes." 

"Sorry." He fumbled to pick up his phone from the bed, not wanting it to disturb the film once again but he smiled as he noticed the name on his screen.

Turning the brightness down, he subtly unlocked his phone and read the messages that were waiting for him.

 

To: Yuuri

Yuuuuuuuri 

 

To: Yuuri

You should have come to the partyyy!!

 

To: Yuuri

It's not too late!!

 

Rolling his eyes and laughing softly, he quickly typed a response, unable to suppress the small smile that was playing on his lips.

 

To: Viktor

I told you I'm busy, shhhh go and enjoy the party 

 

Locking his phone, he placed it beside him and pulled the blanket tightly around himself, shuffling closer to Phichit on the bed and reaching to grab a handful of popcorn. 

"What's this film called again?" Yuuri questioned, throwing a piece of popcorn in the air and catching it in his mouth.

"The King and the Skater," Phichit mumbled, glancing over at his roommate and nudging him with his elbow, "now pay attention, it's getting to the good part!"

He didn't have to be told twice, Yuuri gave the laptop between them his full attention, causing Phichit to grin as his favourite part approached and he flicked his attention from the screen and his friend, wanting to see his reaction.

"Woah," the brown eyed boy had wide eyes and his mouth was slightly open in amazement, "that was incredible!"

"I know right!" Phichit giggled, his eyes scrunching slightly as he shook Yuuri happily, "I told you you'd love it!"

*BUZZ BUZZ*

"Honestly Yuuri." He groaned, glancing at the clock on his bed side table, "Who's even texting you at this time? It's almost three am!"

With a small shrug, he didn't answer and instead just smirked as he opened his messages once again.

 

To: Yuuri

But how can I enjoy it if you're not here? :( 

 

To: Viktor

¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ 

 

To: Yuuri

Not helpfulllll! I want a hug

 

 

To: Viktor

....ok?

 

 

To: Yuuri

:(

 

To: Viktor

Go and hug Chris or someone idk

 

To: Yuuri

But you're so comfyy

 

To: Viktor

How drunk are you?

 

To: Yuuri

Yes

 

To: Viktor

That doesn't even make sense, you're definitely hammered

 

To: Yuuri

¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ 

 

To: Viktor 

Go and drink some water

 

To: Yuuri

Vodka*

 

To: Viktor

No.

 

To: Yuuri

You're no fun 

 

To: Viktor

You'll thank me in the morning

 

 

To: Yuuri

Thanks mum 

 

To: Yuuri

Daddy* ;)

 

To: Viktor

Jfc, whyy >.<

 

To: Yuuri

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 

 

To: Viktor 

You should go home and go to bed 

 

To: Yuuri

Can I come to your bed? ;)

 

Yuuri's eyes widened and he looked over at Phichit who was lazily scrolling through his Instagram, eating a mouthful of popcorn. He instantly noticed that he was being stared at and glanced over at him, an eyebrow raising as he noticed the redness of his roommates cheeks - even in the dimly lit room.

"What's wrong?"

Without answering, he passed his phone over and placed his hands over his face, cringing as Phichit inhaled sharply and began giggling.

"Oh my god, no way." A large smirk was plastered on his face as he stared at the texts and Yuuri let out a frustrated groan.

"Shut up! What do I say??" 

"Say yes, duh." He passed his phone over languidly, as if it was the most obvious answer in the world and Yuuri looked almost mortified.

"What? I can't do that!"

"Why not? You've had a crush on him for months, this is the perfect opportunity." Phichit couldn't wipe off the smile on his face, loving the fact that he could tease him so easily but the brunette just shook his head and looked at his phone again, typing and retyping a reply without sending it.

*BUZZ BUZZ*

 

To: Yuuri

Just to sleep! I promise!!

 

To: Yuuri

For now ;)

 

His cheeks were now a deep scarlet and he bit his lip; Viktor was drunk, he didn't mean anything he was saying, hell, it could have been someone else on his phone playing a prank on him for all he knew.

 

To: Viktor

Goodnight Viktor.

 

Turning his phone off, he sighed into his pillow, deciding that he would just wait until the morning when the Russian was sober, at least then he would be more sure on whether or not he meant what he said.

-

When he finally awoke, it was almost afternoon and he yawned sleepily as he turned his phone back on and stretched his arms above his head, feeling his joints click satisfyingly.

He was dreading reading the texts he had missed last night and his hands were slightly shaking as he pressed the icon, ruffling his messy hair and pushing it out of his face as he waited for it to load.

There were several more texts, mainly Viktor telling him not to go, followed by more flirty texts laced with innuendos and then at least twenty that were just his name being spammed, Viktor not believing he had actually gone to sleep.

Nevertheless, he was smiling as he read through them, running a hand down his face as a stupid grin pulled at the corner of his mouth. It quickly faded however, when he scrolled to the bottom and read the most recent ones, leaving his heart feeling as though it had sunk several feet.

 

To: Yuuri

Oh my god! Yuuri I am so sorry! 

 

To: Yuuri

I was super drunk and someone took my phone and thought it would be funny to text you! I'm so embarrassed!

 

To: Yuuri

Please just ignore everything that was said!

 

He scoffed, shaking his head and placing his chin on the palm of his hand, so it hadn't been Viktor after all, he could have guessed as much; why would someone like him be flirting over text when there was bound to be many beautiful girls at the party last night.

He was grateful that he had ended the conversation and hadn't engaged in the flirtatious behaviour, saving himself a lot of embarrassment from whoever was actually on the other end of the phone.

 

To: Viktor

Yeah, I guessed. Don't worry about it.

 

Dropping his phone onto his bed, he dragged himself out from under the covers and padded out of the room and into the bathroom, tiredly stripping and turning the shower to its hottest setting.

It was stupid for him to be upset about something so trivial, but he couldn't help but feel disappointed that his worry had been true and he cringed at the thought of someone on Viktor's phone, purposefully trying to get a response out of him that was aimed to embarrass him. 

The hot jets were burning his skin but he hardly noticed, too engrossed in his thoughts about the Russian boy and what he had been up to, he must have been pretty drunk for someone to be able to take his phone from him - unless he was the one who suggested it. The thought made him shiver and he felt nauseous, fearing that he was just some big joke and was being strung along for his entertainment and the sake of passing his calculus class. He knew that he was being irrational and assuming things that didn't really make sense, but his anxiety was creeping up on him and once it was there it was difficult to force away again.

Grabbing the bottle of shampoo, he squirted a generous amount onto his hand and quickly lathered it into his black hair and pulled on the ends slightly harder than he should, needing a distraction from his intrusive thoughts. 

What if he was right though? 

It seemed too good to be true that Viktor Nikiforov was actually interested enough in Yuuri to help him with his skating, when he knew that he would still receive help with his calculus even if he didn't. It seemed too good to be true that Yuuri was the one on his mind when he was intoxicated and had to rely on his heart rather than his brain. Everything seemed too good to be true and it was messing with his brain, causing him to fear that everything was not real, it was a joke; surely it was just a joke?

"Yuuri! Come on I need a shower too!" Phichit's rapid knocking on the door ripped him from his thoughts and he hastily rinsed himself off before drying off and heading out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, not feeling any further forward than he was half an hour ago.

Grabbing the first top he saw, he pulled it over his head, not bothering to make an effort because he and Phichit were just going to be hanging out all day. Stepping into his comfiest tracksuit trousers, he tied the drawstring and flopped onto the bed, retrieving his phone once again and he checking for any messages. 

To his surprise his inbox was empty and it just made him feel worse, realising that Viktor was probably ignoring him; he threw away the thought, what was he even supposed to reply with?

"What's up?" Phichit asked as he left the bathroom several minutes later, noticing his best friend staring at the ceiling with a blank expression.

"Nothing." He sighed, pushing himself up and offering a weak smile, but he saw straight through it.

"What happened?" He questioned, his eyes softening as he approached Yuri and placed himself on the edge of his bed.

"It wasn't even Viktor." He mumbled, placing his head in his hands in embarrassment.

"What? How do you know?" Confusion was laced in his voice as his eyebrows knotted together, moving to place a hand gently on Yuuri's shoulder for comfort.

"He told me, he texted this morning saying that someone took his phone." He admitted sadly, looking up at Phichit through the gaps in his fingers.

"Oh, I'm sorry Yuuri," he pulled him in for a hug, rubbing his back gently before continuing, "maybe it was him and he was just embarrassed of what he said when he was drunk, it could just be an excuse?"

Yuuri laughed humourlessly, "Yeah, sure. Have you met him? He's the most confident person I know, I highly doubt that."

"Try not to worry about it," Phichit didn't really know what to say, he didn't want his roommate to be upset over a boy so he suggested the only thing he knew would make him feel better, "want to go and grab some pancakes?"

-

Viktor woke up with a pounding headache, wincing as the sunlight flooded into his room and burned his eyes. He knew that he would regret drinking so much last night but he just kept yelling "I'm Russian!" as an excuse to anyone who told him to slow down. 

After being practically rejected by Yuuri, he began taking more shots, hoping that the burning sensation would distract him from the disappointment he felt; he understood that he was already drunk and there was no way that the Japanese boy would have accepted his offer, but the fact that he had bluntly ended the conversation had been playing on his mind.

If he was honest, he couldn't remember half of what he had actually said after receiving the "Goodnight Viktor" text and he reluctantly grabbed his phone, scrolling through his messages and feeling the heat rising to his cheeks.

No, no, no.

He had made a complete ass out of himself!

Frantically typing, he made up a stupid excuse to justify his texts, hoping that it would be believable; he didn't want to mess this up with Yuuri because of a drunken night where he came on too strongly.

Pressing the send button, he sighed in relief, flopping his head back into his pillow to try and ease the pain in his head. 

With an irritated groan, he pulled himself out of his bed and padded over to one of the cabinets in the small kitchen, pulling out several pills and pouring himself a glass of water, swallowing them quickly and closing his eyes to try and soothe the fuzziness of his head.

"Good morning." 

He turned around to see his flatmate smiling, tiredness written on his features as his messy hair pointed in different directions.

"Morning Chris. Fun night?" He asked nonchalantly, motioning his head towards the Swiss' bedroom where he spotted a girl laying asleep in his bed.

"Mhm." He smirked, helping himself to a pill or two and chugging a large glass of water, "how about you?"

"Chris, you know I don't..." he trailed off, the Swiss boy knew that he didn't take girls home but he still leaned over to look into Viktor's empty bedroom nonetheless.

"It's a shame, that blonde was super hot." He shrugged casually and Viktor had to think for a moment, which blonde? He had vague memories of a girl talking to him, but he had been so wound up over Yuuri that he hadn't even really registered her intense flirting or taken in her features.

"Yeah." He sipped his drink, he had not yet spoken to him about his preference for men, despite knowing that Chris himself was bisexual and would be completely accepting. 

"Maybe next time, eh?" He winked, jabbing him playfully in the ribs before heading back into his bedroom and leaving the silver haired boy standing alone in the kitchen.

Viktor had had many hangovers in the last year of living in Detroit, but none of them had been on par with this one and he returned to his room, laying back on his bed, hoping to sleep it off as he pulled his cover closer and buried his head in it.

-

"What now?" Phichit asked as the two of them stepped into the cold, feeling satisfied with a stomach full of pancakes and syrup.

"I don't know, I have some work I should probably get done for tomorrow." Yuuri shrugged, not really wanting to have to return to the campus tomorrow because that meant facing Viktor, and he was embarrassed at how upset he was over something so small. 

"Gross, homework is boring!" Phichit stuck his tongue out, trying to cheer his friend up by being lively, "Want to go shopping?"

"Not really." 

"Walking?"

"Nah."

"Running?"

"Pass."

"Skating?"

"My muscles are sore." Yuuri noticed the ache in his thighs, but he couldn't deny the way his mind immediately sparked up at the thought and he shrugged, "Oh well, sure lets go skating."

-

After grabbing their skates and adding a couple of layers for warmth, the two of them arrived at the rink and Yuuri was itching to get onto the ice. He used it as a coping mechanism to express his feelings and he needed it at that moment, he wanted to be able to sort through his thoughts and relax.

Within a few minutes he was laced up and making his way onto the cold surface, skating as soon as he reached it, not waiting for his best friend to catch up. 

Rather than worrying about anything, he shifted his focus onto the sound of his blades slicing through the ice, loving the way it echoed through the rink. Ignoring the dull ache in his tired muscles, he built up speed and executed a salchow, but he couldn't help but frown slightly as he was reminded of Viktor and he cringed, not wanting to think about his disappointment.

Returning to his regular skating, he allowed his heart to make all of the movements for him, not really doing anything in particular but letting himself feel free.

"Damn, who broke your heart?"

Yuuri came to a stop as he whipped his head around, locking eyes with his new friend.

"Chris, hi!" He smiled shyly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, "What do you mean?" 

"I'm just teasing, your skating was full of emotion, it's breathtaking." He complimented, causing Yuuri to blush slightly as he mumbled a humble "thank you".

"Were you thinking of anyone in particular?" He pressed and the heat continued to rise to his cheeks but he just shook his head, casually playing it off.

"Nah, you have to actually date someone to have your heart broken, and who'd want to date me?" He chuckled, making his way over to the edge where Chris was standing, feeling rude talking to him from across the ice.

"Don't say that Yuuri," he pouted, licking his lips as he looked him up and down, "you're beautiful." 

He was taken aback by the compliment, he had been called cute before but 'beautiful'? That was new, and he had no idea what to say as he noticed the way the Swiss boy was smiling at him. It was well known that he liked both boys and girls, but Yuuri had not expected him to take an interest in him.

"Thank you?" He blushed, and the smile on Chris' face just grew as he commented on how adorable he was when he was shy.

"Chris hi!" Phichit called as he spotted the two of them talking and skated over quickly.

"Hey Phichit," he waved, leaning on the barrier as he approached, "you two should have come to the party last night, it was incredible." 

"We were invited?" Phichit questioned, looking at Yuuri with confusion and the Japanese boy nodded.

"Yeah, but I promised I'd watch that film with you and I didn't want you to feel like you had to cancel it." He explained, and his friend just smiled and shook his head.

"I wouldn't have minded, we need to go to more parties and enjoy college!" 

"We're having another one on Friday night, you should come!" Chris looked between the two of them hopefully, a warm smile on his face and they couldn't refuse.

"Yeah sure, just let us know when and where."

"Here, I'll give you my number and I'll text you the details later." He offered sweetly and Yuuri handed his phone over, watching as he sent himself a text so that he now had his number.

"Thanks." 

"Honestly it was so wild last night, I'm pretty sure Viktor went back to sleep after taking some painkillers and that was hours ago."

The two first-years just laughed half heartedly, neither of them sure on what to say.

"I just feel bad for that girl though." Chris shook his head and had a small frown playing on his lips, Phichit immediately expanded on the thought.

"What girl?"

"Oh, just some chick that was flirting with him the entire night, he completely led her on and then just left; didn't even remember her that well this morning either," he shrugged casually and smoothed out the frown lines on his forehead, "well, I guess that's Viktor."

"Oh." Yuuri couldn't help but feel even worse, so he had been flirting with other girls all night like he had thought; he was stupid for thinking that he wasn't a player, that he wasn't interested in just stringing people along for fun. Why would he be any different? 

"I didn't think he was that kind of guy." He laughed, trying to brush off his thoughts and act unfazed, not wanting Chris to suspect his crush because that's all it was: a stupid crush.

"Yeah, he looks innocent enough, but once he's got alcohol in his system, he's a textbook playboy." 

"I guess it makes sense, he has more people chasing him than he knows what to do with." Yuuri commented, noticing the sympathetic look Phichit was giving him but he brushed it off, not wanting his pity.

"Yeah." Chris nodded, although he was becoming bored with talking about Viktor and changed the subject.

-

"Yuuri! What're you doing here?" The three of them looked up to see a very tired-looking Viktor making his way down the steps to the ice rink.

"Skating, what does it look like?" He asked bluntly, not in the mood to be happy and fluffy around the Russian boy, "What are you doing here?"

"I thought skating might help my hangover." He chuckled, his blue eyes lighting up as he met Yuuri's, but the brunette kept a neutral expression.

"Okay, well me and Phichit were just leaving, we've been here a few hours." He tugged on his roommates jumper, pulling him to the edge as the made their way off the ice.

"Aw, that's too bad! I wanted to see you skate!" He pouted, clearly thinking that he could convince him to continue, but he just shrugged and placed himself on a bench, beginning to untie his laces.

"Sorry." He said although there was no apologetic tone in his voice and he refused to even look up at him; it wasn't Viktor's fault, it was his own fault for getting so attached to him despite knowing that he flirted with everyone. He was annoyed with himself and was taking it out on the silver haired man, he knew that it was unfair but he couldn't stop himself.

"Bye." Yuuri smiled at Chris as he and Phichit left the rink, hardly acknowledging Viktor's presence, much to his confusion.

-

"What's up with him?" Viktor questioned once they were out of sight, afraid of how cold the Japanese boy was acting towards him.

"What do you mean?" Chris asked with furrowed eyebrows, not understanding what he meant.

"Yuuri, he just...left." He kept his gaze fixed on the door, hoping that it would reopen and they would return, but he knew that they were really gone.

"He's tired, they were here before I arrived and that was almost two hours ago now." Chris shrugged, picking at his nails, clearly not registering Viktor's sadness.

"Oh, oh right of course." He tried to shake off his paranoid thoughts, after all, Yuuri had texted him telling him not to worry about it so it would be stupid to do that.

"So what did you guys talk about?" He asked casually, curious as to what they had been discussing before he arrived, and wondering whether he had said something that upset Yuuri.

"Nothing interesting, school mainly." He shrugged, finally turning his attention to Viktor who looked deep in thought.

"Oh, okay." He dropped it and began to tie his laces, eager to get onto the ice and let his emotions out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll start writing the next chapter soon (hopefully later today) so the next update will come sooner than this one did!


	5. Weakening his crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for for all of the angst but it will get better in a few chapters!
> 
> Also wow I keep adding more chapters hopefully I will stick to one number eventually 
> 
> Enjoy!

"Yuuri, are you alright?" Phichit questioned as they left the building, gently pulling his arm to stop him from walking so quickly.

He let out a long sigh, turning to face his best friend with his eyebrows pulled together, "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You're obviously not, you pretty much just stormed out of the rink just because Viktor showed up." He placed his hand on his shoulder, causing the brown eyed boy to look at him.

"I know," he groaned, throwing his head back and running his hands through his hair in frustration, "I couldn't help it, I was embarrassed; I just didn't feel like being around him."

"Okay." The Thai boy offered a warm smile, showing his understanding and the two of them began to walk again, wanting to be back in the warmth of their dorm as soon as possible.

-

"Do you think he hates me?" Yuuri's question pierced the silence of the room, as he looked up from the stack of homework placed on the desk in front of him.

"What? Of course not." Phichit's eyes widened at the thought and he shook his head frantically, "He might be a bit confused, but there's no way he hates you." 

"Okay." He mumbled, returning to writing the essay at hand momentarily, before placing the pen down and resting his head on the sheets of paper. "What do I do?"

"Well you need to analyse the extract and then write about-"

"-not the essay," Yuuri laughed softly, shifting his attention to his roommate who was laying on his bed, scrolling through his phone as usual, "I mean what do I do about Viktor?"

Phichit placed his phone beside him and shifted on the bed so that he was facing Yuuri, noticing the sadness in his eyes.

"What do you want to do?" He asked, hoping that it would help, because he wasn't sure what the answer actually was or what would be the best approach to he situation.

"I don't know," he licked his lips in thought, burying his head in his arms and closing his eyes with a sigh, "I really don't know." 

"Tell me how you're feeling; what exactly happens between you and Viktor when you meet up? Is he different to when I see him?" He began to list several questions, hoping that if he could get Yuuri to talk about his thoughts it would make it easier to sort through them and make sense out of everything.

"I'm feeling...sad. Confused. Stupid. I don't know." He spoke quietly, not bothering to lift his head up and Phichit didn't try and make him, if this was how he was going to talk he had no reason to change it. "It's just like...I really like him and I never thought that he would notice me - but he did and we got coffee and we talked instead of doing his homework, and he helped me with my skating, and he acted as though he liked me too. But then he lets someone else text me from his phone, while he's flirting with other girls and...I just feel like...I'm a joke to him or something, like he's just using me to pass his class."

"Ok first of all Yuuri, you are not a joke, if he thinks you are then he can go and fuck himself, okay? At the end of the day he's just a boy and there's plenty of fish in the sea. If I'm being honest, I don't think that he's using you for homework, if he was then why wouldn't he have just bought you one small coffee and told you to get on with it? Why would he have helped you with your skating? Why would he text you about non-school related things?"

"Maybe he's just trying to make sure that I keep on helping him and don't get sick of it." Yuuri mumbled sadly, his shoulders shaking slightly from his self-doubt and it made Phichit's heart twist.

"I don't think so, I doubt anyone would be that dedicated to pass a class that they give hours and hours of their time to some boy." Phichit stood from his bed and padded over to Yuuri's desk, beginning to run his hands through his black hair - something that he had learnt helped to soothe him when he got upset or frustrated.

"What if he is just very dedicated though?" He sighed, smiling slightly at the gesture and knowing how much his best friend cared for him. "What if it's all just a big act?"

"Then who needs him?" 

-

Yuuri groaned as his alarm went off and he buried his head into his pillow, he really didn't want to go to lessons today because that meant that there was a high possibility of seeing Viktor on the campus.

He knew that he couldn't avoid him anyway, because he had still promised to help with his calculus, but if he 'coincidentally' just happened to not see him he thought it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. A part of him was screaming that he was overreacting and just feeling sorry for himself, but another larger part of him was screaming that he was being used and he couldn't kill the thought no matter how hard he tried. 

After several hours of having a heart-to-heart with his roommate, he had decided that he would not actively avoid him but he would try and make sure that the only time they had to actually talk was over lunch - and that was when he would do the work for him, not wanting to have to see him more than he had to. The only way that he could weaken his stupid crush was to distance himself, over the last few weeks they had texted almost constantly and met up several times and it had only pulled him closer, making every doubt and negative thought hurt even more due to his attachment to him.

His phone buzzed with a text and as he saw the name he sighed, glancing over at a still-sleeping Phichit who was unable to be consulted for advice.

 

To: Yuuri

Good morning! Hope you're well rested from all your practise! :)

 

It wasn't fair how nice he was being to him - not when he knew that Viktor would never return his feelings all the while he would just fall deeper and deeper into them, without as much as a step ladder to help him back out.

Deciding not to reply, he deleted the message and threw his phone onto the bed, beginning to get ready for the day.

-

"I'm starving." Phichit complained, wrapping his arms around his stomach as they left their English class and headed to the cafeteria.

"You'll be fed soon enough." Yuuri chuckled, trying to hide the way his eyes were frantically glancing across the room, hoping that he didn't spot the silver head of hair as he made his way to the queue.

Luckily, he had been served and there was still no sign of Viktor; he couldn't help but feel slightly relieved as he and Phichit took their seats at their regular table, now feeling more comfortable around the other second-years who greeted them happily as they sat down.

He was giggling at a joke someone had made when he looked up and his eyes met blue, causing him to tear his attention away and focus on Phichit instead. He spotted Chris walking beside Viktor and hadn't even noticed that he was missing from the table until now; there was a spare seat beside him and one at the other end of the table, he avoided eye contact with the Russian, hoping that he would choose to sit away from him.

Despite his hopes, he was clearly heading towards Yuuri and he gulped as he got closer, but suddenly the seat was taken and Viktor was still standing.

"Chris, hi." He smiled, honestly feeling relieved that he had saved him from an awkward half an hour of making small talk with Viktor. He couldn't help but glance up at him though, noticing the way he was frowning at the Swiss boy and looked annoyed as he took the empty seat.

"Hey Yuuri." He winked, stealing a sip of his drink as he smirked playfully. 

"Thirsty?" He laughed, deciding to go along with his harmless flirting, after all it was fun and it's not as though it would hurt anyone; Chris flirted with everyone so it didn't mean anything.

"Very." He licked his lips, placing his chin on the palm of his hand and staring intently at the younger boy with a smile.

"It was nice seeing you yesterday." He grinned, running a hand through his hair as he watched Yuuri eating a mouthful of rice eagerly.

"You too." He replied with a small smile, swallowing his food quickly and adjusting his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"Oo can I try them?" Chris asked excitedly, giggling as he received a nod and Yuuri handed them over while rolling his eyes, although a smirk was playing on his lips.

"Do I suit them?" He asked, biting his lip to try and suppress the grin that was trying to escape, Yuuri squinted at him and then shook his head, returning to his food.

"I don't know, I can't see." He chuckled with a shrug, brushing his loose hair away from his eyes, oblivious of the way Viktor was staring at the two of them.

"Chris give him his glasses back, the poor boy is blind without them." 

Although he couldn't see his expression, Yuuri could tell from his tone that he was irritated; a childish part of him decided to push his buttons.

"Thanks, but I can speak for myself," he said innocently, although there was an undertone of bitterness, "I was just teasing anyway, I can still see it's just a tiny bit blurry that's all. Chris, yes you do suit them, hell you might even pull them off better than me."

He chuckled as he heard a gasp come from the blonde and he wrapped him in a hug, "I can't believe this, I never thought I could wear glasses! Never mind better than Yuuri Katsuki!"

"Call the news, I'm sure they'd love to hear it." He teased, smiling at the warmth he was encased in as Chris squeezed him tighter and ruffled his hair.

"What do you think Phichit?" He finally let go of him, turning to face the other first-year who simply glanced up at him and then shrugged.

"They're just glasses."

Chris inhaled sharply, pressing a hand to his heart to emphasise his offence, resulting in a few people on the table chuckling from his dramatic behaviour.

"Don't listen to him, they're great," Yuuri nudged him, he was unsure where this side of him had come from: flirty and confident; but he was having fun and didn't want to stop, "they look pretty sexy."

Phichit almost choked on his rice at his best friend's words and Chris smirked, leaning in close to the Japanese boy as he shifted a hand to his thigh and Yuuri's eyes widened, "Of course they are, they belong to you after all."

The heat was rising to Yuuri's cheeks and he looked at Phichit, whose mouth was wide open, watching the two of them in shock.

"I guess it's time for them to come home then." He winked, pulling them from Chris' face and placing them back on his own, blinking a few times to adjust to the vividness of the world. 

"You're right, they do look sexy." Chris whispered, tightening his grip on Yuuri's shaking leg, resulting in a small yelp escaping his lips that he swiftly covered with a cough. 

"Hey Yuuri, hurry up and eat your lunch, we need to go." Phichit knew that his friend would regret it if he continued to flirt so much so he made an attempt to get him out of he situation; Yuuri took it, brushing Chris' hand away with an innocent smile and quickly finishing the remainder of his dinner. 

He was glad that Phichit had helped him, he knew that he was getting carried away and he offered a grateful smile as he shovelled the rice into his mouth. 

Soon enough, his bowl was empty and the two of them rose to their feet, saying a few quick goodbyes before walking away.

"Text me!" Chris called just as they left, winking at the skater who was still slightly red from his thigh-grabbing.

"Okay." Yuuri smiled, although he had no intentions of actually messaging him; if he thought that Viktor was a player, Chris was on another level and he didn't need any more flimsy relationships in his life.

"How is he supposed to text you if he doesn't even have your number?" Viktor asked bitterly, stabbing his fork into one of the fries on his plate, feeling satisfied that Chris couldn't continue his advances on the Japanese boy.

"We do have each other's numbers, we traded them yesterday." Chris smiled, unaware of the venom that was within the glare he was receiving.

"Oh." Viktor stabbed another fry, feeling irritated at this fact, even though he knew that he had no right to; after all, he and Yuuri were just friends and he could text whoever the hell he wanted to. 

-

"Thank you." Yuuri bit his lip as he and Phichit made their way through the corridor.

"What?"

"For, you know...stopping me, I don't know what came over me!" He ran his hands through his hair as they walked, feeling flustered and confused, "It was just Chris was flirting and all of a sudden I felt like a different person, I felt...confident." 

"Yeah, that happens sometimes, certain people can bring out a different side of you. But I know that's not the real you, I couldn't help but feel like you were just doing it to get on Viktor's nerves and I don't know, it was kind of uncomfortable." Phichit explained, putting his hands in his pockets and looking at the floor.

"You're right, I think I was doing it to get back at Viktor. The worst part was that it felt good, I was enjoying it." Yuuri ran a hand down his face, cringing at himself, "Am I a bad person?"

"No, no, no, of course not! To be fair, Viktor hasn't spoken to you about your...," Phichit thought for a moment, unsure of the label that the two of them had; he knew that Yuuri saw him as more than a friend but he had no idea how the Russian boy felt, "connection? So for all he knows you just see him as a friend, so why would it matter if you and Chris were flirting?"

"Good point." Yuuri sighed, feeling slightly better as they approached their next class, although he still couldn't help feel a little guilty for his behaviour, no matter how many times he told himself Viktor wasn't interested in him.

-

The next day dragged, fortunately he didn't see Chris or Viktor at lunch and instead he and Phichit discussed their new favourite TV show and tried to convince the rest of their friends to watch it, feeling satisfied when they received a few assurances that they would.

-

He wasn't so lucky the day after.

It was almost the end of lunch and he had successfully avoided him all day, when Viktor appeared and loudly placed his tray beside him, clearly annoyed and Yuuri swallowed, suddenly regretting everything he had done over the last few days.

"Hey, can you help me with this please?" Viktor asked casually, pulling a booklet out and placing it on the table, a fake smile plastered on his face.

"Sure." Yuuri grabbed a pen and began to solve one of the questions, unable to ignore the way he was being intently stared at by the silver haired boy. 

Most of them had been done and he smiled as he noticed that Viktor had managed to almost complete all of it himself, feeling proud of him - even though it sounded extremely patronising.

"There you go." He said a few moments later, placing the pen on top of the booklet and taking a sip of his bottle of water.

"You missed one." He kept a straight face as he passed it back, ignoring the way Yuuri's face scrunched up in confusion.

"No I didn't, that was definitely the last question..." his voice trailed off as he turned the booklet over and there was a handwritten note scribbled angrily at the top of the page.

"You know I can't read Russian." He looked up at him through his glasses and Viktor just shrugged, taking a bite of his sandwich. 

He was about to press and ask him what it meant when the bell rang and he stood up, heading to the bin to throw the remainder of his lunch away; while he was gone for a moment, Yuuri quickly pulled his phone out and snapped a photo of the writing, intending to try and translate it later. 

Just as he slid it back into his pocket, Viktor quickly grabbed the sheets and shoved them in his bag.

"See you around, Yuuri."

-

*BUZZ BUZZ*

Yuuri groaned as he reached for his phone, wondering who on Earth was texting him so late. Half-expecting it to be Viktor he was shocked when he saw that it was actually Chris.

 

To: Yuuri

Hey, are you awake?

 

To: Chris

Hardly, why?

 

To: Yuuri 

I'm lonely and I can't sleep :(

 

To: Chris

That's tragic but I'm tired so I'm going to sleep 

 

To: Yuuri

Nooooo don't go! 

 

To: Chris

My eyes are literally burning right now, I was almost asleep when you texted me

 

To: Yuuri

You're the one who replied

 

To: Chris

Because it's almost 1:30am, I was worried incase something bad had happened 

 

To: Yuuri

Yeah. Something bad has happened :/

 

To: Yuuri 

I can't fucking sleep

 

To: Chris

Goodnight 

 

Rolling his eyes, he muted his notifications and placed his phone back on the night stand, trying to fall asleep once again; he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that it wasn't Viktor who was keeping him awake, if it was the Russian, he might not have minded as much.

-

"Yuuri, you'll be fine, just imagine he's your coach. Nothing else. Okay?" Phichit placed his hands on Yuuri's shoulders, looking into his eyes as he fretted, not wanting to go and practise with Viktor.

"Okay." He closed his eyes and sighed deeply, pulling his roommate in for a well-needed hug. He knew that he had been acting cold to the second-year for the last few days and it could all come back to bite him now.

"Good luck!" Phichit called as Yuuri grabbed his bag and made his way to the rink, his heart beating faster than usual.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Asdfghjkl so I just need to say that Chris is not meant to be a 'bad guy' in this, he's just very flirty and thinks yuuri is attractive, he doesn't know that Viktor likes Yuuri otherwise he wouldn't be flirting with him ok this has been a PSA thank you for your time)
> 
> Next chapter is written but I'm writing the one one after before I publish it!


	6. Drinking to forget the crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is the miscommunication over in this chapter? No 
> 
> Will it be over in the next chapter? Hahahaha not even a little bit 
> 
> Honestly this fic keeps getting more and more angsty I'm so sorry

"Yuuri!" Viktor grinned as he spotted him, making his way towards the younger skater and wrapping him in a hug.

The action caught him a little off guard and he felt slightly confused, giving him an awkward pat on the back and a half smile. Wasn't he mad? Yuuri had been ignoring all of his texts after all, and the only reason he had agreed to meet him was because he needed Viktor's help if he actually wanted to get anywhere with his skating. Besides, when he asked if Yuuri was still going at lunch earlier the same day, he couldn't bring himself to say no.

"Can I skate now?" Yuuri asked, gently pushing himself away and heading to a bench to lace his skates up, Viktor following close behind.

"What do you want to work on today?" He asked chirpily, ignoring his small rejection and focusing on the fact that he was actually here.

"I don't know, you tell me." Yuuri sighed, refusing to look up as he twisted his laces over eachother and pulled them tightly.

Viktor placed a finger to his lips and thought for a moment, he knew that Yuuri was very talented and would be able to learn many things quickly, but he wasn't sure on which one to develop.

"How about your toe loops?" He suggested, offering a warm smile and receiving a shrug.

"Whatever." Yuuri rose to his feet, heading over to the ice and pulling his skate guards off before beginning to skate at the edge to warm himself up.

He didn't know how he should be feeling, all of his emotions and thoughts were jumbled up; Viktor had acted irritated with him yesterday at lunch and on Monday when he flirted with Chris, but why would he care? He was a nobody and Viktor was a playboy, he didn't want to have his heart broken.

But now he was acting fine, as though Yuuri hadn't been getting under his skin for the last few days and ignoring him, was he just trying to ignore the slight tension between them and hope that it diffused by itself?

Or did he really just not care?

That made more sense;  why would he care if Yuuri wasn't texting him anymore? It's not like they were dating, they went out a few times to do 'homework' and Viktor was informally coaching him; that was all.

"Alright Yuuri, lets start your toe loops now! Start with a single!" Viktor shouted across the rink, leaning on the barrier as he kept his eyes fixated on the brunette.

"Ok." He mumbled, picking up his speed and flying through the air, landing successfully with a smile. 

"Amazing! And again." He clapped twice and Yuuri rolled his eyes, repeating the motion with the same accuracy.

"Very good! Now make it a double." 

-

"Are you tired?" Viktor asked after a couple hours, noticing the way that Yuuri was rubbing his eyes as they stopped for a break. 

"Yeah, a little." He placed a hand over his mouth as a long yawn escaped his lips and Viktor pouted.

"Did you not get enough sleep?" 

"Well I almost did, but then Chris texted me and woke me up." He shrugged, taking a sip from his water bottle and avoiding Viktor's gaze, "Plus, we've just had a full day of school."

"Oh, right yeah. Well we can stop anytime." Viktor assured him with a smile, although Yuuri could see the slight sadness in his eyes. Why did he have to mention Chris? 

"Actually, can we stop now? My muscles are kinda sore." Yuuri knew that he would still be able to skate for at least another hour or two, but the opportunity to leave early and hang out with Phichit seemed too pleasing to turn down.

"Sure." Viktor gave him a half smile and Yuuri placed himself on a bench, beginning to untie his laces as the older athlete timidly sat beside him.

"Yuuri..." his voice came out weakly and he stared at the boy's skates rather than his face.

"What?" It came out harsher than he intended and he cringed, noticing the way Viktor's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"I," his voice trailed off slightly as he swallowed, forcing himself to say it, "I miss you." 

"I'm right here." Yuuri stated obviously, continuing to untie his skates without so much as a glance in the Russian's direction.

"That's not what I meant." He mumbled, finally looking at Yuuri's face which was emotionless, clearly not understanding him.

Except Yuuri understood him completely, he knew what Viktor had meant, but he didn't want him to miss him; he wanted him to just leave him alone, because he kept saying all these sweet things and making him fall harder for him, and Yuuri knew that soon enough he would cross the line of no return and he wouldn't be there to pick up the pieces.

"Yuuri," Viktor continued, realising that he had to be the one to continue the conversation because he sure as hell wasn't going to, "Talk to me." 

"We are talking." He said flatly, pulling his sore feet from his skates and slipping them into his comfy trainers.

"No, I mean talk to me. Really talk to me." Viktor began to talk quickly, growing frustrated at his apparent inability to understand the meaning behind his words. 

"I gotta go." With his skates in his bag, he threw it over his shoulder and stood from the bench, ready to leave but Viktor grabbed his wrist, pulling him back.

"What is your problem?" He pulled himself up, slightly towering over the brunette who was still refusing to look at him, sending a wave of hurt through him. He didn't understand why he had been acting so cold to him and it was driving him crazy.

"I don't have a problem." He spat, yanking his arm away quickly and releasing his wrist from the older boy's grip, finally looking at him, only to offer a glare.

"Yuuri!" He called after him as he left the rink, not bothering to turn around to see the tears forming in his eyes. As the door slammed Viktor sunk back onto the bench, burying his head in his hands as a few tears rolled down his cheeks.

"What did I do?"

-

"Yuuri, what's wrong?" Phichit asked as his roommate entered, looking agitated as he flopped onto his bed.

Instead of replying, he just shook his head, he was a terrible person. He kept ignoring his feelings and letting them build up, only to have them hurt others because he couldn't deal with them. 

"Yuuuuuuri." Phichit placed himself on the bed beside him, rubbing small circles on his back, "Tell me what happened."

Sighing, he sat up and explained it to Phichit, hoping that he would be able to help or make him feel better for the way he was behaving.

"Honestly Yuuri," he shook his head, biting his lip in thought, "I really think you two need to talk about it.

"But what if he doesn't feel the same and I embarrass myself?" Yuuri questioned, his eyes wide and brimming with tears, "I wish he'd never spoken to me." 

"Don't say that," Phichit wiped his best friend's tears away with the sleeve of his shirt, offering a sad smile, "if he doesn't feel the same then at least you'll know and be able to move on. But if he does feel the same, then it'll be incredible, so what have you got to lose?"

Looking into Phichit's eyes, Yuuri knew that the Thai boy was right, as much as the thought scared him, he would have to do it; continuing this way was only making it worse and adding layer after layer of tension between them.

"He'll be at the party right?" Yuuri asked quietly, nervously pulling at his sleeves as he waited for Phichit to nod.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure he will."

"Okay, I'll tell him then." 

-

When he awoke the next day, Yuuri had a pit of anxiousness in his stomach and his heart kept having palpitations whenever he thought about what he had to do later. He tried to suppress it, focusing the full day of skating he had ahead of him instead, knowing that worrying about it wouldn't change anything. 

Phichit could sense his fear, it was clear in the way that he kept flubbing his jumps and getting easily irritated by himself whenever he made a mistake, throwing his head back in frustration.

"Yuuri, it's going to be fine." He encased the brunette within his arms as they stepped off the ice, trying to ease his anxiety, although he knew it wasn't as simple as that.

"Thank you Phichit-kun, I hope so." He wrapped his own arms around the other skater, closing his eyes and focusing on his friend's steady breathing, hoping it would keep him grounded and safe.

"Boys! Break time is over!" Celestino's tone was authoritative but they knew he meant well, so they listened to him and finished their day of skating.

-

"Does this look okay?" Yuuri asked, stepping out of the bathroom several hours later in a pair of tight black skinny jeans and a loose white button-up. 

"It looks more than okay." Phichit nodded excitedly, "Viktor is going to have to keep it in his pants." 

"Phichit!" Yuuri exclaimed, heat rising to his cheeks, despite knowing he was only joking to lighten the mood and ease his anxiety.

"Sorry, but yeah, you look great!" He grinned, searching through his own wardrobe for something to wear while Yuuri began to dry his damp hair.

He knew that he looked older and more mature with it styled back so once it was dry he grabbed some gel and slightly pushed it back, going for a slightly messy look that was still casual. 

As he looked at himself in the mirror, he knew that something was missing; biting his lip he pulled his glasses off and instead placed his contact lenses in, smiling at his appearance; he just looked like a regular guy and he loved it.

"Woah." Phichit stared at him with wide eyes once he turned around, "How come you never told me you had contact lenses?"

"I don't know," he shrugged, rolling up his shirt sleeves slightly, "I guess I just never used them because it was easier to put my glasses on."

"Well you look great - not that you don't look great with your glasses, it's just you look...different." He grinned, looking the Japanese boy up and down and taking in his new look.

"A good different?" Yuuri raised an eyebrow, still not 100% confident on how he looked but when his best friend started nodded frantically he laughed and a smile tugged at his lips.

-

Although Chris had texted Yuuri the address, it wasn't difficult to find the house where the party was being held; there were several girls stood outside smoking in tight dresses, while others were standing with red cups full of alcohol in their hand; all the while music was pounding loudly from inside. 

It was quite far away from their flat, it was being held at a group of third-years' accommodation so there was more room but they had to travel further; Yuuri didn't mind though, it gave him more time to prepare to talk to Viktor.

As the two of them stepped into the house, they were instantly hit by the strong scent of alcohol and sweat, cringing slightly at the odour but pressing on nevertheless. 

It was a large house, there were at least seven or eight bedrooms upstairs in addition to many ordinary rooms downstairs, so Yuuri had no idea how long it would take him to find the Russian boy, especially with the large amount of people who were packed within the building. 

"Phichit! Yuuri!" The two of them turned to face a few first-years they shared classes with who had apparently been invited to the party too.

"Leo! Guang hong! Hi!" 

If he was honest, Yuuri was slightly relieved that they had been intercepted by them, realising that it gave him more time to work up his confidence and be ready to approach Viktor. Besides, it was only 7pm, the night was still young.

"Come on, lets get you two a drink." They smirked, dragging them to the kitchen where there were hundreds of different options, ranging from fruit cider to beer to vodka, but Yuuri couldn't spot any soda.

"Erm is there anything that isn't alcohol?" He asked nervously, and Leo gave him a small smile, opening a fridge and tossing him a can of cola.

"They're meant to be for mixing the spirits, but I doubt anyone will care, but just incase, put it in one of these cups so no one can tell." He handed him a large red cup and Yuuri emptied the can into it, throwing the metal away and beginning to sip his drink to blend in.

After Phichit grabbed a can of beer, the four of them took a few seats in the living room, shouting over the music to hear each other and giggling at things that weren't funny. 

Except Yuuri. 

His eyes were constantly flicking across the room whenever someone entered, checking if they were Viktor but they never were.

"Yuuri, loosen up a little." Guang Hong smiled kindly, noticing how on edge he was and Yuuri nodded, shaking his body slightly to try and eliminate his worries. It wasn't going to end well if he approached Viktor while feeling nervous and didn't say what he needed to, he had to calm down and relax.

Taking the can from Phichit's hand, he took a swig and began to swallow mouthful after mouthful; the taste was horrible and it made him want to gag, but he knew that it would help to soothe his mind.

"Go Yuuri!" Leo laughed, watching as he finished it off and wiped his mouth with his sleeve, handing his friend the empty can.

"Yuuri," Phichit's eyes sharpened, "don't drink just because you think you have to, I know you."

"Shhh, let me live, you said we had to have more fun at college right? Go to more parties? We're here, so I might as well enjoy it." He put an arm around his shoulder and laughed, already beginning to feel the effects of being slightly intoxicated.

"Okay, but I'm not cleaning up your sick, so don't drink too much." He sighed, running to the kitchen to grab himself another drink and retuning a moment later.

They all chatted for an hour or two before Yuuri stood up, wanting to get it over with and announced that he was going to go and search for Viktor.

He stood up suddenly and had to steady himself as the room swayed, he had only had one and a half beers but his lack of experience had made it go straight to his head and he had to blink a few times before beginning to walk, feeling confident as he began his search.

Checking a few of the rooms downstairs, he began to feel disheartened as he had still not found him and the possibility of him being in a bedroom was becoming more and more likely. 

There was one room left to check and he took a deep breath and he pushed through the small crowd and felt slightly relieved as he spotted the Russian. However, the relief soon evaporated and was replaced with embarrassment as he saw that he was sat on a chair with a girl on his knee, whispering things into his ear while his hand was gripping her waist.

Without being noticed, he turned and hastily left the room, wanting to be as far away from him as possible. 

How could he have been so stupid?

He came ready to lay his heart out in front of Viktor, tell him everything and he was there with a girl. 

A girl.

He groaned as he squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, pushing through the mass of people, of course Viktor wasn't gay! He had no chance with him after all!

He wasn't even angry at him, he was angry at himself, how could he have been so blind? Clinging onto a thread of hope that he could return his feelings, but it was obviously impossible. 

He bumped into someone and was alerted back to reality, looking up to see a friendly face.

"Hello gorgeous," Chris winked, not noticing Yuuri's agitated state and he was grateful, he didn't want anyone to ask him because he knew that he would break if they did. 

Biting his lip, he tried to hide his emotions and feigned a smile, "Hey Chris." 

"You look amazing!" He complimented, looking the younger boy up and down and wrapping an arm around him, "I hardly recognised you without your glasses."

"I thought I should give it a change." He shrugged nonchalantly, appreciating the warmth that came from Chris' body on his own.

The Swiss boy noticed Yuri's empty hand and gasped, "Let's go and get you a drink!"

As his hand was intertwined with Chris', he made no attempt to stop himself from being dragged towards the kitchen and he wondered what he should try.

"What do you want?" He asked, turning to face the Japanese boy as he scanned his eyes over the array of alcohol. 

Something stirred within him when he spotted the clear liquid and he picked up the glass bottle, pouring himself a shot of Vodka.

"Woah, are you sure Yuuri? That's really strong." Chris looked apprehensive as he brought the shot glass closer to his lips.

He just nodded and threw it backwards, swallowing it quickly and scrunching his face at the way it burned his throat.

With wide eyes, he poured two more, handing one to Chris and keeping the other for himself; he knew that he would regret it in the morning, already feeling slightly sick, but at that moment he didn't care.

Alcohol helped you to forget, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Asdfghjkl I'm torn, the next chapter is ready to post but the ending is like really kinda like "wtf?? No??" and I'm not sure when the chaper after will be ready and I don't want to leave you guys hanging ahhhhhhhhh 
> 
> what would you prefer?


	7. Viktor's crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so I decided to post this straight away so there's going to be a gap until the next one is posted.
> 
> I wanted to try and show the story from Viktor's POV so let me know what you think!

Viktor didn't even want to go the stupid party, the only reason he was there was because Chris wouldn't stop asking him until he caved and he thought that Yuuri might turn up.

He refused the offer of alcohol upon arriving, not wanting to embarrass himself incase he did see the younger boy and so he could think clearly about what he wanted to say. He couldn't understand what he had done to make him hate him so much, and it was constantly playing on his mind, making him go through everything he had said to him, trying to figure it out.

He wondered if his drunken texts had scared Yuuri off after all, maybe he could see through the lie and was uncomfortable with his attempted advances. 

The worst part of it all was that Chris and Yuuri had been flirting a lot in the last week and it was getting under his skin; he knew that it was stupid because Chris flirted with anyone and anything that breathed - and he didn't even know that he liked Yuuri or he wouldn't be doing it. But he couldn't bring himself to admit it, people would think of him differently - not that he particularly cared what others said, but he was frightened that Yuuri would not return his feelings and he would be rejected. 

After weeks of talking and getting to know each other better, Viktor found himself getting drawn further and further towards him, wanting to learn more. He was beyond annoyed with himself that he had drank so much at the last party and texted him against his better judgement and then blamed it on someone else.

"Viktor!" A girl's voice interrupted him from his thoughts as he entered the room, recognising her as the one who had been all over him at last week's party.

He gave her a kind smile, one that was supposed to be friendly although she didn't take it that way and walked up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and trying to kiss him.

He turned his head to the side slightly to avoid it, smelling the strong scent of alcohol and gently pushing her away.

"Sarah, you're drunk." He noticed the way she was pouting at him, clearly hurt from the rejection and he led her over to one of the seats, sitting her down before excusing himself to the bathroom.

He didn't even need it but if it gave him a reason to get away from her he would take it, as he passed one of the rooms he heard that laugh that he could recognise anywhere and he peeped his head in to see Yuuri taking a large swig from a can of beer. 

He squinted for a second, taken aback by his appearance, he looked...hot. Yuuri was someone that he would usually describe as cute or adorable, but now he was seeing a different side to him where he looked older and as though he could break your heart with a single look. 

As he opened another can of beer and began to drink it, Viktor shook his head, knowing all too well that he was going to make himself sick, but he seemed to be enjoying himself so he left it, at least now he knew that he was here. Not wanting to disrupt the fun that he was having with his friends, he carried on walking searching for the bathroom, deciding that he would look for him later.

On his way back to the room, he grabbed a can of soda, sipping it as he walked and he passed Chris.

"Heyy!" He grinned, wrapping an arm around the Russian boy, "Are you having fun?"

"Yeah I guess." He shrugged, honestly he wasn't loving it, but the fact that he would be able to talk to Yuuri soon made it slightly more bearable and a smile tugged at his lips.

"You're not drinking?" Chris raised an eyebrow, glancing at the soft drink in his hand questioningly.

"Nope, I don't want a repeat of last week." He laughed awkwardly, cringing at the texts he sent, however Chris thought he was just referring to the way he was screaming the lyrics of songs and dancing terribly all night and chuckled softly.

"Good idea." He poked a rib playfully with a smirk, "Oh and by the way, Sarah is looking for you."

With a wink, Chris walked away and disappeared into one of the crowded rooms and Viktor sighed deeply, walking into the room he had previously been in and taking a seat in the corner, away from the blonde girl.

"Viktor!" She whined, standing up and stumbling slightly as she rose to her feet and made her way towards him. Tripping slightly on her own feet, she fell onto him and shrugged, adjusting herself to be more comfortable in his lap.

He knew that she was shuffling her bum against him to try and cause arousal, but it just made him uncomfortable and his cheeks began to flush as she leaned in closely to his ear and began to whisper things that he would rather not hear.

With wide eyes, he placed a hand on her waist, trying to gently push her away but instead she threw her arms around his neck and began giggling, refusing to get off of him.

"Viktor, do you want to go upstairs?" She bit her lip seductively and batted her eyelashes, clearly expecting him to jump at the opportunity and drag her up there himself.

Instead, he shook his head and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, hoping that this innocent affection would ease his rejection.

"No, you're drunk." He whispered, locking eyes with her to help her understand his point but she narrowed her eyes and folded her arms childishly.

"So?" 

"You don't know what you're saying." He tried to explain, but she was not listening, acting as though she had been insulted by him.

"What? Am I not good enough for you or something?" Her lip wobbled and her eyes began to water, he knew that it was mostly due to the alcohol in her system making her emotional, but he still felt a pang of guilt.

"No, no, of course that's not it!" He took her hand in his, rubbing circles to try and make her feel better; he was not attracted to women but he could still appreciate their beauty, and there was no denying that Sarah was drop-dead gorgeous. 

"Then why? Are you bent or something?" She laughed bitterly and suddenly a wave of anger flashed through him, and he pushed her away, although she still didn't climb off him.

"What? I'm gay just because I don't want to fuck you?" He chucked humourlessly, he was furious at the way she had laughed at the possibility of him being attracted to other men, not to mention the way she had said it derogatorily. 

"Well you're not denying it." She smirked, moving a leg over to straddle him and place her slim fingers on the sides of his face, "But we both know it's not true."

She placed her lips against his, kissing him messily before he could register what was happening and he pushed away quickly, wiping his mouth with his sleeve in disgust, the taste of alcohol lingering on his tongue.

"What the fuck?" He glared at her, pushing her away and this time she finally stood up, looking angry and confused as he rose to his feet and barged past her, not bothering to turn around.

Stepping out into the cold, he welcomed the cool breeze on his face as he wrapped his arms around himself for warmth; he hadn't realised how warm and stuffy it was inside until the fresh air entered his lungs and he could breathe more easily.

"Want a drag?" Someone asked and he looked over at a third-year who was leaning against the wall, offering him his cigarette as he exhaled a small cloud of smoke.

"No thanks." He smiled, not finding the idea of poisoning his lungs particularly appealing and the other boy just shrugged, placing the cigarette back to his lips.

"So what're you doing out here?" He asked, noticing the way his eyebrows were scrunched and he looked slightly on edge.

"I rejected a girl, she didn't take it too well." He stated, it wasn't the whole truth but it wasn't a lie so he decided it was sufficient enough.

"Oh right, I'm sure she'll get over it." He assured him, turning to face Viktor as he looked him up and down.

"How about you? Why're you out here?" He asked, curious as to why other people felt the need to distance themself from the party.

"It was too loud, everyone was too drunk." He shrugged, taking another drag from his cigarette as he glanced towards the house and rolled his eyes.

"Oh." Viktor placed himself on the small brick wall that surrounded the house, swinging his legs absentmindedly as he appreciated the calmness the night brought, despite the music blaring from the house behind.

"So what's got you down?" The guy asked, dropping his cigarette and stamping it out before taking a seat next beside the silver haired boy.

"What? I already told you." He looked at him with confusion, but he already knew that he didn't buy it.

"You're not out here just because you rejected a girl, that house is big enough to hide in; why're you really sat outside?" He pressed, looking at him with genuine curiosity and kindness and Viktor smiled slightly.

"I don't really know. I'm confused and angry." He sighed, placing his head in his hands, not really sure why he was telling a stranger all this.

"Angry at who?" 

"Myself." He cringed, hating how pathetic he sounded but he also knew that sometimes talking about problems helped to resolve them.

"Why?" The softness off the stranger's gaze made the Russian boy feel as though he could trust him and he began to open up.

"I'm pretty sure I've ruined my chances with someone, and I'm still not entirely sure what I did to make them hate me." 

"Any ideas?" The man pulled his legs up and sat crossed legged on the narrow wall, resting his elbow on his knee and his head in the palm of his hand, listening to the troubled boy with genuine interest.

"Only one; I texted him when I was drunk, and then pretended it wasn't me." He admitted, fiddling with his hands, realising that he had just pretty much admitted he was gay to a total stranger, "But I'm not really sure why that would make him hate me, so there must be something else that I haven't picked up on."

"Why don't you just ask him?" The man laughed, finding humour in the way that he was too proud to talk about the problem at hand; Viktor felt relieved at the fact that he didn't care it was another boy and was still there to help.

"What if..." he licked his lips and swallowed before continuing, "What if it's something I can't fix?"

"Most things are fixable, and you'll never know if you don't try. Even if you can't patch it up, at least you'll have closure." He shrugged, finally tearing his gaze away from the younger boy and turning his attention to the stars that littered the sky above them.

"I know, I'm just afraid." He sighed, running a hand through his hair and tugging it slightly in frustration, "I'm a coward."

"I may have just met you a few minutes ago, but can I give you some advice?" He asked, his tone gentle and Viktor nodded, "Just go and fucking talk to them."

"O-okay. I will, thank you." Viktor hopped down from the wall and held a hand out for him to shake, "I'm Viktor by the way, Viktor Nikiforov." 

Linking their hands together, the older man smiled, "Otabek Altin."

-

"Have you seen Yuuri? Yuuri Katsuki?" Viktor asked a random person as he re entered the house, sighing as they just shook their head and turned away.

"Yuuri?" He made his way around the house, poking his head in each room as he went; he had the confidence to say it now and he needed to find him before he backed out. 

Heading to the room he had seen them in earlier, he smiled as he spotted Phichit in the corner laughing with his friends.

"Phichit!" He called, grabbing his attention instantly and the Thai boy looked up at him, clearly drunk.

"Mhmm?" He slurred, laughing slightly at the sound of his own voice and Viktor rolled his eyes as he approached him.

"Where's Yuuri?" He asked, searching his eyes for any sign of him being sober enough to understand the question. 

"Who?" He squinted at the silver haired boy, not hearing what he said properly.

"Yuuri. Where is he?" 

"Oh! Yuuri!" He giggled, a large grin on his face, "He's my best friend!" 

"Yes, I know, but where is he?" Viktor shook his head, he was completely drunk which he should have expected but it was making the task at hand difficult.

"Oh, I dunno." He shrugged, looking around the room as if it was a trick question, "He went to look for Vikt- you!"

Viktor groaned, so they had been looking for each other at the same time? Or had he been outside when Yuuri was looking for him?

"How long ago?" 

"Maybe like an hour? I dunno." Phichit guesstimated and Viktor's heart rate sped up as he realised it had been less than an hour when Sarah was trying to make a move on him; he dreaded the thought of Yuuri witnessing it and he shook his head, it was unlikely, she had only been on him for about five minutes in total.

"Did he come back?" He asked, slightly worried, if it really had been an hour ago then he didn't know where else Yuuri would have gone, the house wasn't that big.

Phichit didn't answer, but he shook his head and Viktor continued his search, checking each and every room downstairs. He didn't dare to check upstairs, knowing that he would be walking in on teenagers "getting it on" and he'd rather not witness it.

He was clueless on what to do, grabbing his phone he sent Yuuri a text, asking him where he was, although he hadn't replied to him in almost a week so he probably wouldn't start again now.

"Phichit!" Viktor called again, an idea popping into his head, "Has Yuuri texted you?"

The younger boy shrugged and pulled his phone from his pocket, squinting at the brightness of the screen.

"Ummmm, yep!" He smiled, beginning to read it aloud, "I'm leaving the party, I'll see you in the morning! Have a drunk time and don't get too fun!" 

He hiccuped as he finished the text and Viktor rolled his eyes at how drunk he really was; although he was a little disappointed that he hadn't gotten the chance to talk to Yuuri about everything, he was as that he was safe and wasn't upstairs doing god-knows-what with god-knows-who.

Suddenly the music was no longer appealing and the people weren't interesting and Viktor just wanted to go home, the fact that Yuuri wasn't there anymore meant that he was just at a regular party again and he was bored of it.

He didn't bother informing anyone of his departure, Phichit was already back in his conversation with his friends, ignoring the Russian and he stepped back out into the cold, beginning his walk home.

-

When he entered his small shared flat, he could smell the alcohol and knew that Chris had brought someone back to continue their own after party; a few cans laying haphazardly on the table and his jacket hanging on the back of the sofa. His shoes were messily laying by the door, beside a small pair of converse and it confirmed his suspicions, he just hoped that they were already asleep and didn't have to worry about any noises keeping him up. 

Flicking the main light off, he headed into his own room and stripped out of his newly-bought clothing; he laughed sadly at himself, he had even gone shopping to buy new clothes to impress Yuuri and he hadn't even spoken to him.

As he pulled his loose pyjama shirt over his head and climbed under the covers, he checked his phone one last time; he didn't expect Yuuri to reply to him, but it still hurt each time he was left with an empty inbox.

With a long exhale, he placed it on his night stand and closed his eyes, glad that he didn't have a hangover to greet him in the morning.

-

Viktor woke up unusually early for a Saturday - well, before 11am. The clock read that it was 9:21am and he felt his stomach grumbling so he dragged himself out of bed and headed to the kitchen, grabbing a glass of water as he searched for something to make.

He knew that Chris was going to be hungover; he always was after parties, and he pondered on the thought of cooking a breakfast for both of them; after all they did have a guest.

He had been slightly rude to Chris over the last few days, his jealousy turning him hostile and now that he knew he was going to patch things up with Yuuri, he decided that he should do this gesture for his best friend.

Grabbing a pan from the cupboard, he quietly placed it on the stove and threw in some bacon and sausages while putting a few slices of bread in the toaster.

He was no chef, but it didn't take a genius to make a bacon and sausage sandwich with toast, so he smiled several minutes later when he arranged three plates with a hearty breakfast and picked two of them up, heading towards Chris' room to wake them up with breakfast in bed.

Unable to knock with full hands, he eased the door open with his foot, trying not to give them a loud awakening with their guaranteed headaches.

Viktor almost dropped the plates as he spotted the topless person who was laying in Chris' arms. 

No, no, no.

Surely this wasn't what it looked like; he frantically glanced around the room and sure enough Yuuri's trousers were messily strewn on the floor and his underwear laid beside them with his shirt.

Unable to comprehend what had happened, he backed out of the room, luckily neither of them had stirred and he placed the plates on the table, heading back into his own room and locking the door.

Falling onto his bed, he pulled his knees up to his chest, feeling all of his emotions from the last week catch up to him and a choked sob escaped his lips.

How was he meant to fix this?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY HELP
> 
> Do I write the next chapter and include what actually happened with Yuuri and Chris or just have him briefly explain it at the start?
> 
> I feel like if I describe it all it will help Yuuri's side of the story, but if I don't it will help Viktor's side so I'm torn!
> 
> Let me know what you guys think!


	8. A requited crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops I am so sorry this is like a day late, I had to actually do some homework instead of pretending that it doesn't exist so it took me longer to write than usual and it's almost 2am but I wanted to finish it asdfghjkl
> 
> So I got mixed messages for how to explain the Chris/Yuuri situation; I originally wrote a kinda detailed recount of it but then I took it out and decided against it to keep it slightly more ambiguous
> 
> But if anyone wants to know exactly what happened I'm going to make it an optional chapter following this one which is just slightly over 1k words (although technically this is the last chapter so feel free to ignore it if you feel like there was enough explanation here) 
> 
> Anywayyssss hope you enjoy and sorry for it being late <3 
> 
> (And thank you for reading!)
> 
>  
> 
> EDIT: A few people have asked for another chapter that has fluff and I'm working on it now so the 9th chapter is still optional but the 10th will have the fluffy stuff if you need a recovery from all of the angst

As Yuuri opened his eyes and took in his surroundings, he began to panic, realising that this was definitely not his room; feeling the warmth beside him he turned around to come face to face with Chris, who had his arm lazily draped across him.

Suddenly memories came flooding back and he quickly looked under the covers, sighing in relief when he noticed they still had at least some clothing on; he placed his head in his hands, staring at his ruined shirt on the floor. 

His head felt hazy and he had the worst headache he had ever experienced, regretting getting so carried away with how much he drank; he had only done it to help him forget about Viktor, and instead he had ended up leaving the party sobbing and ruining his favourite shirt with beer.

He could faintly smell the scent of bacon and it made his stomach turn with hunger, and he poked the sleeping boy next to him.

"Psst," When he didn't receive a response, he brushed a strand of hair away from his face and tapped his nose, "Chriiiis."

He hummed tiredly, not bothering to open his eyes although Yuuri now knew that he was conscious.

"Good morning." He smiled as he watched his eyelashes slowly flutter open and a sleepy smile tugged at his own lips. 

"Morning." His voice was laced with sleep and his hair was messily sticking in different directions as he yawned, stretching his tired muscles.

"Not to be annoying or anything, but my stomach is going crazy." Yuuri admitted shyly, wrapping his arms around himself to try and ease the uncomfortable ache.

"Mmm, help yourself." He closed his eyes once again and wrapped the cover tightly around himself, clearly not ready to get up yet; Yuuri carefully removed himself from his grip and rose to his feet, picking up Chris' shirt from the floor to go with the pyjama trousers that were a few sizes too big for him.

Glancing in the mirror by the door, he laughed slightly at how small he looked in the clothing before heading into the kitchen, hoping that he wouldn't bump into his roommate because it wouldn't be a very good first impression.

To his surprise there were two plates of breakfast on the table and he scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion, were they for him and Chris? 

Unsure of what to think of them, Yuuri bit his lip for a moment before deciding not to take them just incase, maybe his roommate had someone staying over too and they were for the two of them; that made more sense.

Looking through the cupboards, he grabbed a bowl and began to pour himself some cereal, almost dropping the box when he heard a voice behind him.

"Nice shirt." 

He recognised it without needing to turn around and he felt himself become tense, why was Viktor here? 

"T-thanks, but it's not mine." Yuuri stuttered, not bothering to face the Russian and continued to make his breakfast, pretending that he was unfazed by him.

"I know, I was being sarcastic." He scoffed bitterly, glancing at the shirt with disgust, it wasn't even a bad shirt, but the fact that Yuuri was wearing Chris' clothes made him sick to the stomach.

"Oh." Yuuri shrugged, taking a spoon and sitting at the table, eating a mouthful of his cereal as he ignored the venom in Viktor's tone.

"It's rude not to eat food that others make you." He said flatly, glancing at the untouched plates on the table and Yuuri cleared his throat, still not making eye contact with him.

"How was I supposed to know it was for me?"

"Well I'm telling you it is." Viktor rolled his eyes, not really having an answer.

"Thanks, but I've got cereal now, you can just eat it." If he was honest, Yuuri didn't want to eat anything that he had made, he was still frustrated with him and any nice gestures that he did just annoyed him.

"I already ate mine." He stated, glancing around the room until his eyes landed on the empty beer cans, "You two could have at least tidied up after yourselves last night."

"Sorry it was my fault, I didn't feel too good so Chris just-"

"-whatever, it doesn't matter." He snapped angrily, hating every second that Yuuri spoke about his best friend; he knew that he was just being jealous, but he couldn't help it.

"How come you didn't text me back?" He asked suddenly and the brunette finally looked up at him, seeing the hurt in his eyes, "I was looking for you last night and I couldn't find you."

Yuuri scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief, "Sure you were." 

"What's that supposed to mean?" Viktor questioned, stepping closer and the younger boy swallowed as he averted his gaze, not wanting to be reminded of the image of him kissing the girl, although he was certain it was burned into his mind until the day he died.

"Nothing." He shrugged, taking another bite of his cereal, not wanting to discuss this right now; he had been ready to confess everything the previous night, but now it was as though everything he wanted to say turned sour on his tongue and he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"I was, even ask Phichit and those other guys he was with."

"No offence," Yuuri licked his lips, and locked eyes with Viktor, "but I really don't care; just because you were looking for me for like two minutes doesn't mean that you didn't spend half the night..." 

His voice trailed off and he couldn't finish his sentence, knowing that he sounded jealous and if he complained about him kissing a girl Viktor would probably just laugh at him and he would make everything worse; after all they were at a party, that's what's people did and he had no right to be annoyed at him.

"What?" Viktor stared at him with scrunched eyebrows, "Spent half the night what?"

"Nothing, it doesn't matter." Yuuri shrugged and continued to eat his breakfast, hoping that he would just drop it. 

"Whatever." Viktor scoffed, pouring himself a glass of water and leaning against the countertop, "It's not like it's any of your business anyway."

"I never said it was." Yuuri bounced back, irritated by the bitterness in Viktor's tone and how rude he was being; he hadn't done anything wrong, he had tried to talk it out with him but he was too busy with some random girl.

"Besides, it's not like you can talk; you were probably too busy sucking Chris off in the bathroom." He said casually, taking a sip of his water and Yuuri almost choked on his cereal, completely caught off guard by the vulgar accusation and he shot daggers at the Russian boy.

"Is that what you think of me?" He scoffed, biting the inside of his cheeks while his eyebrows were angrily pulled together and he shook his head.

"Well you two seem to like each other, I don't see why not." He shot Yuuri a sickeningly sweet smile, trying to disguise his disgust but he saw straight through it.

Yuuri was at a loss for words, he didn't even know what to say and he couldn't stand the thought of being around him for a second longer. Of course he liked Chris - everyone liked Chris; he was one of those people that anyone could chat to for hours and feel comfortable with, but that didn't mean he wanted to jump his bones given the first opportunity.

Feeling uncomfortable with the hostility between them, he threw his bowl into the sink and headed back to Chris' room, neither of them muttering another word to each other. 

"I think Viktor is in a bad mood." Yuuri sighed as he closed the door and crawled back under the covers, not wanting to head home just yet.

"He's just not a morning person, it's nothing personal." The blonde whispered, not bothering to open his eyes, still not ready to get up for the day.

Yuuri almost laughed, of course it was personal; as he thought about it, he wondered whether Viktor had spoken to Chris about him or mentioned him at all if they were flat mates. Shaking his head, he doubted it and let out a long exhale, staring at the closed door that separated them.

He closed his eyes and smiled at the feeling of Chris' fingers lifting his shirt and absentmindedly tracing a pattern on the small of his back, sensing his tension.

"Are you alright?" He asked, breaking the silence of the room and Yuuri nodded quickly.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" He feigned a smile and bit his lip, allowing himself to lean closer to the blonde boy.

"I dunno, just ever since you came back from the bathroom last night, you seem kind of upset."

The bathroom?

Oh.

Yuuri squeezed his eyes closed, not wanting to think about it, it was bad enough seeing that girl on Viktor's lap but walking in on them kissing in the same room was almost unbearable; so he did what any normal person would do, locked himself in the bathroom and cried for a while.

"It's nothing." He shrugged nonchalantly, suppressing the image from his mind, "I think the alcohol just messed with my emotions a little bit." 

"Hmmm," Chris sighed, clearly not believing him and he moved his hand away, instead lacing it with Yuuri's, "you can talk to me, you know. I want to be there for you."

As he looked into his soft green eyes, he saw the genuine kindness behind them and a smile tugged at his lips as he squeezed his hand.

The two of them flinched as they heard the door to the flat slam loudly and Yuuri cringed; Viktor was definitely angry.

"It's all too complicated." He frowned, breaking eye contact and turning his attention to study the wallpaper instead.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Chris began running small circles on Yuuri's hand with his thumb, hoping that it would make him feel more comfortable to share what was troubling him.

"Well, I guess it's not too complicated, I'm just an idiot." He laughed humourlessly, feeling tears pricking in his eyes that he quickly wiped away, not wanting to cry again.

"You're not an idiot." Chris used his spare hand to brush away the loose hair that was covering Yuuri's eyes and he gently turned his face to look at him, "Okay? You're not an idiot."

"Fine, I have idiotic tendencies then." He joked, trying to ease the ache in his chest as all of his thoughts began to race through his head again.

"I doubt that," Chris smiled, still sleepy but ready to listen to the younger boy, "care to elaborate?"

-

"Wow," Chris blinked a few times, his eyebrows pulled into a frown as he held Yuuri's shaking body close and wiped away a few stray tears, "Viktor is an idiot." 

"Mhm." Yuuri mumbled; he had spent the last hour telling Chris every last detail, sharing every thought he'd had and the Swiss boy had listened intently, taking in every word.

"It's going to be okay, you two just need to talk." He assured him, offering an encouraging smile but Yuuri just shook his head.

"You should have heard him this morning, he sounded like he hated me." He dropped his gaze to his lap and stared at his hands sadly, remembering the venom in Viktor's tone. 

"He doesn't hate you, I can promise you that." Chris ran a hand through his hair and sighed, "I guess it makes sense now."

"What?"

"Viktor, being bitter whenever I mentioned you; I thought he was just sick of me being flirty all the time but I guess he was just jealous."

"Yeah, right." Yuuri scoffed, "He was probably just in a bad mood."

"I don't think so..." 

"Oh, fuck; I've ruined everything." Yuuri sobbed, pulling his knees up to his chest, if Chris was right and he was jealous, surely that meant he liked Yuuri didn't it? At least a little bit?

It didn't matter now though, he wasn't even sure if Viktor would give him a second look in the corridor anymore.

"You haven't! It's going to be okay, I promise, you just need to talk." He pulled the crying boy in for a hug and stroked his back, trying to comfort him and he just shook his head; how was he supposed to "just talk" to Viktor? It was easier said than done.

-

"Are you sure?" Chris asked for the seventh time, watching as Yuuri fastened his laces by the door, "I don't have anything to do today, so I'm happy for you to stay."

"Honestly it's fine, I have a tonne of homework I need to finish anyway. Plus I don't really want to face Viktor when he comes back." He sadly smiled, rising to his feet and laughed at the oversized jumper he was wearing, "Thanks for letting me borrow this by the way."

"No problem, it suits you." He chuckled, noticing how it made him look even smaller than he was and Yuuri just blushed.

"See you later." He shyly placed his hand in his pocket and opened the door with his free one before stepping out of the flat.

"Bye!" Chris grinned, closing the door once he was out of sight.

It hadn't occurred to Yuuri until now that he had no idea where he was and he pulled his phone out, googling the directions back to his flat. He hadn't checked his messages since he got the party and once he knew the direction he needed to walk in he opened his inbox.

He couldn't ignore the pang of guilt when he saw that Viktor actually had been looking for him last night.

 

To: Yuuri

Where did you go?

 

To: Yuuri

Yuuri?

 

To: Yuuri

I need to talk to you

 

To: Yuuri

Please

 

He felt bad when he looked at his screen and saw that all of the messages that had been sent over the last week were one sided and he hadn't replied once; he shook it off, that didn't change the fact that Viktor had been kissing another girl last night and no matter how much he wanted him to, he probably wasn't going to return his feelings in the same way.

Viktor wasn't the only one who had texted him the previous night, he deleted the chat, not wanting to look at it any longer and opened his other message from his roommate.

 

To: Yuuri

Yuuuuri! im goinf to sleep at Leos abd Guang Homgs place so ill see yoi tomorrow!!

 

Yuuri shook his head with a gentle laugh, he had left Phichit an hour or so before he had actually gone to Chris' and the boy had already been extremely drunk; he didnt doubt that he had continued to drink beer through the night and didn't even want to think about the hangover he probably had.

Pulling the jumper tightly around himself, he shivered slightly from the cold breeze and his his hands in the long sleeves, grateful for the slight warmth it brought.

After half an hour of walking, he finally began to recognise the area and was soon back at his own dorm, quickly stepping into the warmth of the small room.

After and hour and a half of sitting at his desk working through a pile of homework sheets, he quickly became bored and pulled his phone out, refreshing his social media to distract himself.

He wondered if he had taken any photos last night that he could post, noticing that his Instagram had been inactive recently, whereas Phichit was posting every other day. Unfortunately the only one he had was of his roommate pulling a face with a can of beer in his hand and it was incredibly blurry, so with a soft sigh he disregarded the idea. 

Swiping along his photos he stopped when he spotted the Russian letters that had been scribbled on the back of Viktor's calculus work, realising that he had forgotten to translate it up to now. 

It took him a while to work it out, adding the Russian keyboard to his phone and then zooming in on the photo, spending several minutes looking for every symbol and double-checking he had gotten them right before pressing enter into the online translator.

"What did I do wrong?" 

It was a simple enough question; seemingly innocent, but the words on his screen caused him to frown, becoming aware of how obvious he had been in his attempts to push him away. Sighing, he deleted the photo, what was done was done; there was no use crying over spilt milk. 

Phichit returned several hours later, bubbling with excitement and stories to tell Yuuri, despite the evidence of his hangover in the way he winced every so often and placed a hand on his forehead. 

"It was so cool Yuuri!" He giggled, laying on his back and staring at the ceiling after finishing a story about Leo winning a game of beer bong. 

The Japanese boy just smiled at his friend, glad that at least he had enjoyed it and when Phichit asked what happened with Viktor, he just shrugged and told him that he never found the Russian boy, not wanting his roommate's pity.

-

Sunday dragged, with Phichit constantly asking Yuuri for help with his homework and by the time night rolled around again they felt as though they had missed their day, drowning in a sea of unfinished assignments. 

Yuuri was unable to sleep that night, tossing and turning at the thought of having to see Viktor the next day after their mini confrontation the previous morning and he cringed, squeezing his eyes closed. No matter how badly it might go, he had to talk to him.

-

When the bell for lunch rang, the tsunami of students flooded the corridors, heading straight to the nearby canteen but Yuuri waited back for a couple moments to avoid the initial rush - and buy him some time before he had to talk to the silver haired boy.

To his surprise, he wasn't at their usual table and even by the time he had been served and took his seat, he was no where to be seen. With furrowed eyebrows, he glanced around the room, wondering where he was.

Ten minutes before the bell was due to ring to signify the end of their break, he spotted the head of silver hair entering the cafeteria and buying a sandwich. However, rather than taking his regular place, he walked in the opposite direction and sat at another table with people Yuuri had never seen before, presumably other second-years.

Chris noticed this too and turned his attention to the brunette, giving him a sympathetic look, "He'll come around." 

Acting as though he wasn't bothered by it, he feigned a convincing smile and continued to eat his lunch as everyone became engrossed in anne conversation.

Soon enough it was time to head back to class and he threw his bag over his shoulder, making his way to the exit behind the large mass of students.

"Yuuri!"

The voice made his heart jump slightly and he turned around to see Viktor staring at him, a book in his hands.

"You dropped this." He said flatly, his eyes vacant of any emotion and Yuuri approached him timidly, taking the book and thanking him with a shy smile.

"Whatever." He rolled his eyes and rudely barged past the younger boy, leaving him standing there with a saddened expression.

He had thought that he'd been given an opportunity to rectify things after all, that his clumsy mistake of dropping a book had been a sign that it was now or never, but as he watched Viktor disappear through the doors ahead the hope vanished and he sighed dejectedly.

-

When he got back home after his long day, he collapsed onto his bed and let out a long exhale, burying his head in his pillow.

Why was this so difficult?

Pulling out his phone, he scrolled through his contacts and selected Viktor's name, contemplating whether or not to just send a text; he had been waiting for him to reply for over a week so maybe it would help?

His fingers tapped his screen, typing and retyping, never satisfied with how it sounded.

'I'm sorry'? 

No, that was too vague, he would probably just ignore it; besides Yuuri wasn't the only one who had things to apologise for.

'Can we talk?' 

That seemed like the easiest option; the one that made the most sense, but as Yuuri thought about it, he became nervous, afraid in case he said no or if he just made the whole thing even worse.

'Hello'?

There was no way that he would reply to that; not after Yuuri had been so cold to him and they had bickered at his flat, he'd most likely delete the message or tell him to fuck off.

Placing his head in his hands, he cancelled it and decided against texting him; he was feeling agitated and his anxiety was beginning to surface due to his lack of control over the situation.

As he stared at his bag in the corner of the room, he bit his lip and looked at the timetable on the wall which Celestino had given him for the rink. With a relieved smile at the empty block, he rose to his feet and threw on his coat and shoes before grabbing his skates and heading out the door to do the one thing that could clear his mind: skate.

-

The rink was empty as he had expected, except for one or two other first years who had come to practise also but he paid them no mind, quickly lacing up his skates and getting onto the ice as fast as he could.

He could always count on the ice to make him feel better; no matter what was going wrong in his life, it was always there when he needed it and he didn't know what he would do if he didn't have skating as a way to disconnect himself from reality.

He didn't even know how long he had been skating, but when he stopped for a small break he realised that he was now alone and the other skaters had left long ago. He couldn't say that he was disappointed, he would much rather be on his own, with no one to see his mistakes except for himself; no one to criticise every small thing he did wrong.

Taking a seat on one of the benches and sipping on his bottle of water, he closed his eyes and just listened to his heart beat, still beating heavily from his long skating session and he felt the calmness that it brought.

A loud screech grabbed his attention, recognising it as one of the many doors which had been neglected of oil for several years.

His throat went dry as his eyes met blue and Viktor looked at him with confusion.

"Coach said no one was here for practise on a Monday, I didn't know you were going to be here." He stated flatly, not understanding why the Japanese boy was here.

"Me neither," Yuuri laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck with hand nervously, "I just felt like skating." He tore his gaze away, beginning to untie his laces, he was going to leave soon anyway so he didn't see the point of staying when he wouldn't be able to concentrate under the watchful eyes of the older skater.

A bored "oh" was all he received as Viktor took a seat a few benches away, not giving him a second look as he slipped his feet into his own expensive looking skates.

"Viktor, I..." Yuuri was speaking before his mind could even process his words and he closed his mouth shut, noticing the way the Russian tensed slightly at the gentleness of his tone.

"You what?" He questioned, finally looking back up at him, his fringe falling softly over his eyes, although his face still remained vacant of any expression.

"I-I hate this." He admitted, his eyebrows falling slightly as he looked sadly at the boy in front of him.

Viktor just scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief and narrowing his gaze, "Well you're the one who ignored me for a week."

Yuuri didn't know what to say, he was right, it was his own fault that he had created this mess but now he was trying to pick up the pieces and he hoped that Viktor would let him.

"I know, I'm sorry." He pulled at the ends of his jacket sleeves, avoiding eye contact, "But I couldn't help it."

"You couldn't help it?" Viktor laughed humourlessly, "What, was your phone broken? Did you delete my number? Did you forget I existed?"

"No! No, of course I didn't forget," he fixed his vision on the ground, feeling almost embarrassed for the lack of contact he had given, "I just couldn't."

"Whatever." He chuckled dryly, pushing himself to his feet and beginning to walk towards to ice, acting as though he didn't care. "Just leave me alone."

"Viktor please, I don't want it to be awkward between us." Yuuri quickly stood, gently wrapping his hand around the Russian's arm and pulling him back slightly, forcing him to look at him.

"You should have thought about that before you fucked my best friend." He spat viciously, yanking his arm from Yuuri's grip and glaring at him with disgust.

"What? Me and Chris didn't have sex!" Yuuri's mouth was agape, a scandalised look plastered on his face as he stared at Viktor in confusion.

"Of course you didn't, so you just slept together." He laughed mockingly, clearly not believing the younger boy.

"We slept together, as in we literally slept! That's all!" He moved to stand in front of the silver haired boy, demanding his attention when he tried to dismiss their conversation and begin skating.

"Bullshit!" He yelled, anger radiating from him as he stared down at Yuuri, "I fucking saw your clothes on the floor! Your underwear and everything, so don't even try and lie to me!"

"It wasn't what it looked like!" Yuuri exclaimed, realising how cliché he sounded, but it was the truth and Viktor totally had the wrong idea, "I spilled beer on myself so Chris gave me some clothes to borrow and then we went to sleep, nothing else!"

"Is that the best you can come up with?" He smiled bitterly, refusing to believe a word that he said, "Chris has brought many, many people home from parties; not once has he 'just slept' with any of them. So do me a favour and don't waste your breath."

Yuuri was becoming increasingly frustrated by the second, he wanted to scream and shake him, but he knew that it was useless and he was too damn stubborn to listen.

"Ask Chris! Just ask him!" He pulled his phone from his pocket, shoving it towards Viktor but he just pushed him away.

"Just leave it Yuuri, I don't have time for this." He tried to manoeuvre his way past the brunette and get onto the ice but he continued to block him, refusing to budge.

"Why won't you believe me?" He questioned, anger bubbling within him as a result of fighting a losing battle.

"Because it doesn't make sense, why would Chris take you to back to his flat if he didn't want to have sex with you? There were plenty of people at the party who would've happily volunteered and he wouldn't just drop that for no reason."

"Because I was a mess!" Yuuri yelled, his anger getting the better of him, "Because I was drinking too much and sobbing to him and he didn't know what else to do!"

Viktor's cold stare softened at this new information and he tried to suppress the guilt that came along with it, "Why?"

"Why what?" Yuuri asked, his eyes now beginning to prick with tears which he hastily wiped away; when he wanted the two of them to talk he hadn't meant this, he didn't want to be having a screaming match in the middle of an ice rink.

"Why were you crying?" His tone was quizzical, but there was a hint of sympathy laced within it and he lowered his voice, no longer yelling as he previously had been.

"It doesn't matter." He mumbled, breaking the eye contact, he didn't even want to think about it, let alone give Viktor the satisfaction of knowing how badly it had affected him.

"It obviously does, if it was bad enough for Chris to make you leave." 

"I don't want to talk about it." He bit the insides of his cheeks, not wanting to cry in front of Viktor but his gaze was now hesitant as he looked at Yuuri.

"Was it...was it because of me?" He asked apprehensively, and when the shorter boy didn't answer but refused to meet his eyes it confirmed his earlier suspicions of him witnessing Sarah with him.

"Shit Yuuri, I'm so sorry. She came onto me, but pushed her away." He ran a hand through his silver hair and let out a long sigh, feeling his heart twist slightly when Yuuri just shook his head.

"Sure you did." He finally took a step back, no longer in Viktor's way, although he just didn't want to be close to him anymore as he was reminded of his lips against the blonde's and he squeezed his eyes closed.

"Yuuri, I'm telling the truth."

"Well so was I, but you didn't believe me." He choked, a few stray tears slipping down his face and Viktor instinctively moved his hand to wipe them away.

"I'm sorry." 

The two words were simple enough, but the genuineness of them was clear and Yuuri finally looked up, a sad smile tugging at his lips as he met Viktor's eyes.

"I'm sorry too. I should have texted you back." He admitted and Viktor nodded, accepting his apology and the two of them remainder silent for a moment, unsure of what to say.

Yuuri swallowed the lump in his throat before hesitantly holding his hand out, "Friends?"

Viktor couldn't hide his disappointment as he inhaled sharply, glancing between Yuuri and his outstretched hand, "What?"

"Oh." Yuuri's cheeks reddened and he quickly pulled his hand back, tucking it into one of his pockets, "Sorry, I just assumed that we were okay now, but I understand if you don't want us to be."

"No, no, it's just I thought that...never mind." Viktor dismissed his thought, realising that maybe he had gotten the wrong impression from the Japanese boy after all.

"What?" Yuuri's eyes were wide and innocent, waiting expectantly for him to elaborate on the thought.

"You know, for a genius you can be pretty damn dense." He chuckled, closing his eyes and running a hand down his face, not sure whether Yuuri was messing with him or was really just that oblivious.

"I don't follow." He tilted his head questioningly, his features pulled together in thought. 

"Oh my god, Yuuri." He sighed, groaning slightly at how clueless he was, "I don't want to just be your friend, do I have to spell it out for you? I want you to text me back because I want to hear about your day; I want to talk to you about random shit until the ridiculously early hours of the morning. I don't want other people to mess about with your glasses or steal your food at lunch because I want to be the one to do that and make you giggle. I don't want you to sleep with other people because I want to be the one you share a bed with and hug in your sleep. This last month or so has been the best thing that's happened to me since I moved to Detroit and the last week of us barely speaking has been the worst. So yes, okay, I was jealous, really fucking jealous in fact, but I thought you knew why it was getting under my skin so much!

Yuuri just stared at him for a moment, trying to process everything he had just said, trying to decide whether this was real; as he squeezed his eyes closed and blinked a few times and Viktor Nikiforov was still standing there with his heart on his sleeve, Yuuri was speechless.

"Yuuri? Say something please." Viktor's voice was so gentle it warmed the brunettes heart and he licked his lips, unsure of what to even say.

"Viktor, I..." the anxious yet hopeful look on the older boy's face was enough to encourage him to continue, "I had no idea, I'm sorry."

"Oh." He looked deflated as a frown tugged as his lips, not receiving a confession that Yuuri felt the same and he felt embarrassed of his unrequited feelings.

Suddenly the Japanese boy began speaking rapidly, his eyes flicking between the floor, to Viktor, to the wall, to the rink and back again, clearly nervous.

"I'm sorry for what I did, I didn't think it would hurt you, I only ignored you because I doubted that you would ever return my feelings and I didn't want to dig myself into a hole that I couldn't get out of; it was selfish to try and stop myself getting hurt without thinking how you might feel - I know that now and I'm really sorry. But it's just that ever since I saw you at skate practise when I came I was amazed and I didn't even think you would notice me! So I kept doubting myself and telling myself that i was just dreaming whenever I entertained the possibility of there being an 'us' and I'm sorr-"

Yuuri's rambling was abruptly cut off as Viktor took a few steps forward and pulled him close, carefully pressing their lips together to stop him from his constant doubt and prove that he did like him in that way.

It took him off guard but he slowly relaxed, and Viktor could feel him smiling as he placed one of his hands in his black hair and the other on his waist. It was brief but sweet and he was sure he had gotten his point across, so as they pulled away he rested his forehead against Yuuri's and looked into his chocolatey eyes, a soft laugh of relief escaping his lips as he pulled him in for a hug. The younger boy wrapped his small arms around his frame and squeezed tightly, gripping Viktor's shirt in his hands as he rested his head on his shoulder.

Yuuri was speechless, he considered saying 'thank you' but he threw away the idea, knowing that it was not the right response. But he couldn't think of anything else, nevertheless, he was more than happy to enjoy the silence and let it sink in; to appreciate the fact that the boy he had a crush on did like him back and had actually kissed him. 

Viktor had kissed him.

His face broke out in a grin and the heat rose to his cheeks the more he thought about it and he closed his eyes, feeling more than content.

"Hey, Yuuri?" Viktor finally broke the silence after a few moments, receiving a quiet hum in response.

"You still owe me a donut."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this ending was okay, I've rewritten it and added parts everywhere because I felt as though they made up too quickly?
> 
> Idk ahhhhhh it's late and I just wanted to give you guys the last chapter so yeah if you think it was rushed I might adjust it when I get the time but I tried ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> Can I just say thank you for reading this?? You guys are all so sweet and your comments really encouraged me to keep writing this mess of a fic so thank you!! <3


	9. (Optional chapter)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What actually happened between Chris and Yuuri

*Friday Night*

"Yuuri, slow down!" Chris chuckled, taking the bottle of vodka away from the already-intoxicated seventeen year old.

"No! Alcohol is fun!" He whined, pouting at the blonde and staring at him with his innocent brown eyes, hoping that he would give in.

"I know it is, but you'll make yourself sick." He tutted, ruffling his black hair with a giggle, causing a grin to break out on the younger boy's face.

"Will you look after me if I'm sick?" He slurred, gripping the bottom of Chris' shirt and tugging it childishly.

"Of course." He tapped his nose affectionately and Yuuri pressed his head against his chest, wrapping his arms around his frame and squeezing him tightly.

"Promise?" He whispered, closing his eyes as he listened to Chris' heartbeat and the older boy nodded, rubbing his back soothingly.

"Drink some water for me please." He gently peeled his small arms away and grabbed a glass from one of the cupboards, filling it to the top and handing it to him.

He looked at it with disappointment, clearly not in the mood to drink it when there was the option of having as much alcohol as he wanted, but when he saw the look on Chris' face, he sighed and began to take a few sips.

"Thank you." He smiled, he knew that if he didn't keep himself hydrated he would suffer for it in the morning and he didn't want to think about the cute Japanese boy with a painful hangover.

"Can I have more vodka after this?" He hiccuped, looking hopefully at him, but he just shook his head with a soft chuckle.

"No Yuuri, no more vodka. You're getting as bad as Viktor."

The smile on Yuuri's face faltered at the mention of the Russian boy's name but he quickly hid it and sighed, "Fine, you didn't say anything about beer though!"

"We'll see, depends on how much water you drink." He smirked, hoping that if he gave him an incentive he would drink more of the plain liquid, luckily it worked and he began to gulp down the cool glass of water and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, holding out the glass for a refill.

"More please!"

After several glasses of water, Yuuri excused himself to the bathroom, although he wasn't sure where it was so he began to check all of the rooms, forgetting which he had already been in earlier. 

Curiosity getting the better of him, he poked his head into the room where he had seen Viktor and he almost threw up there and then when he saw the girl on his lap with her lips pressed to his.

There was no denying it now that Viktor was straight after all, fair enough someone sitting on his knee didn't prove that he was attracted to her, but he was pretty sure that kissing her did.

He scrambled out of the room, opening another door and sighing in relief as he found the bathroom and locked the door behind him. 

-

"Yuuri! Are you alright?" Chris looked worried as he re entered the room with bloodshot eyes and a trembling lip and he quickly wrapped him in a hug, Yuuri's sobs causing him to shake gently against him.

"Come on, lets go." Knowing that the middle of a loud party probably wasn't the best place to discuss the reason for him crying, he intertwined their hands and began to lead him out of the house through the back door to save him the embarrassment of being seen crying.

"My flat is just around the corner, you can crash there tonight." He offered, pulling his jacket off and wrapping it over his shoulders as he noticed the way he was shivering from the coldness of the night.

"Thank you." He whispered, his voice wavering as he spoke and it made the Swiss boy's heart twist at how vulnerable he sounded.

-

"You can just leave your shoes there," He pointed at the door as the two of them entered the flat and he placed his jacket on the back of the sofa.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, placing himself on the seat and patting the place beside him which Yuuri took without hesitation.

"I don't know." He placed his head in his hands and sighed deeply, he didn't even know what he was supposed to say.

"You don't have to if you don't want to." He assured him, standing up and heading to the fridge, "you still want that beer?"

Yuuri nodded without thinking, he was already drunk so what difference would one more make? Besides if he was sick he had someone to take care of him so he had nothing to lose. 

As it was placed in his hands, he pressed the tab down, quickly sipping it as the foam began to froth slightly, "Thanks." 

"No problem." Chris sank back into one of the sofa cushions, not sure of what to say or do, he wasn't used to people crying in front of him and he didn't know how to deal with it.

"Want to listen to some music?" He suggested, that was what he normally did when he brought people back to his apartment, although he wasn't sure whether it would appeal to Yuuri.

"Won't your roommate mind?" He asked, glancing at the closed door of the second bedroom.

"No, they're still at the party." He shrugged, not realising that he was oblivious to the fact that Viktor was his roommate.

"Oh, well I'm not really in the mood to listen to music anyway, it's been pounding my head for the last few hours." Yuuri laughed softy and Chris nodded, seeing his reasoning.

"So what did you think of the party then?" He was excited to hear his opinion on his first college party, after all he loved them and he hoped that Yuuri did too.

"It was great, really! Until we had to leave, sorry for making you leave early." Yuuri hung his head, tapping the sides of his can anxiously but the blonde boy just assured him that he didn't mind and it helped to ease his anxiety slightly.

"It wasn't as good as last week's you should have seen Viktor, honestly he was-" 

Yuuri choked on his drink at the mention of his name again and spilled beer all down his top and trousers, feeling it seeping through his clothing.

"Shit!" He stood quickly, trying to avoid getting it on the sofa fabric and Chris quickly gathered some paper towels, cringing at the stain that it was leaving on Yuuri's shirt.

"Maybe you shouldn't drink this beer after all." He chuckled, although he was being serious and took the can from his hand, pouring it down the sink and placing it on the table.

"Come on, I'll get you some dry clothes." He delicately took his hand and led him into the bedroom, sitting him on the edge of his bed as he began to pull out a clean shirt and pair of trousers for him to borrow for the night. 

He handed them to the brunette who thanked him, before leaving the room to give him some privacy to change, waiting for him to reopen the door a few minutes later.

Yuuri asked what to do with his dirty clothes and Chris just waved his hand, telling him to just dump them on the floor until the morning and the two of them climbed into bed. 

"I'm too hot." Yuuri mumbled after several minutes, feeling his temperature rise from his alcohol intake, Chris nodded in understanding and propped the window wide open to let some cool air flow through before returning the bed and the Japanese boy pulled his shirt over his head, insisting that he couldn't sleep in a shirt and he simply shrugged and turned the light off.

"Goodnight Yuuri." He whispered quietly in the silence of the room, wrapping an arm around him.

"Goodnight Chris."


	10. Boyfriends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> People wanted fluff, so here's something I whipped up while procrastinating my schoolwork

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, a few people asked if I could write another chapter/epilogue because there wasn't enough fluff to weigh out the angst so yeah, this is what the outcome was.
> 
> Hope you enjoy it :)

"What flavour do you want?" Yuuri asked Viktor, standing in front of the large board of options as the lady behind the counter smiled at them patiently.

"Hmmm," he placed a finger to his lip in thought, scanning his eyes over the flavours quickly, "can I have all of them?" 

Yuuri rolled his eyes with a soft laugh, flashing him his thin wallet, "Yeah sure, if you're paying." 

"Nevermind, I'll just have chocolate then." He chuckled and with a nod the brunette took a step forward and began to order their donuts as Viktor found them a small table in the petite bakery.

"Why thank you." He grinned as Yuuri placed the tray of donuts on in front of him and he just offered a smile in return, taking a seat beside the Russian.

"Oh my god, these are so good." Yuuri let out a small moan as he took a bite, closing his eyes in delight, "Good choice."

"What can I say? I have a gift." Viktor smirked, taking a bite into his own donut and licking his lips in satisfaction. 

"So, how have you been?" Yuuri asked shyly, feeling as though he should bring the topic up and talk it out now that they had patched things up.

"Okay, I guess," he shrugged with a nervous smile, "but I think I failed one of my calculus tests because I was too stubborn to ask for your help." 

"Oh, I'm sorry. You should have just asked, it was my fault," he broke their eye contact for a second before a reassuring smile tugged at us lips, "besides, I'm sure you did great." 

"I hope so, you were a great tutor." He smirked, and Yuuri blushed slightly before scrunching his eyebrows.

"Were? What, was I fired?" He joked, confused as to why Viktor used the past tense when he was still more than willing to help.

"Well I mean, I guess we broke the whole teacher/student relationship rule." He winked, raising an eyebrow cheekily and the heat rose to Yuuri's cheeks but he giggled nonetheless.

"Can't say I regret it." He reached his hand under the table and intertwined it with Viktor's, squeezing lightly and gently rubbing his thumb over his knuckles.

"Me neither." Viktor looked at their joined hands and couldn't stop the grin that broke out on his face, starting to laugh softly when he noticed the chocolate filling that was sitting on Yuuri's lip, the Japanese boy completely oblivious to it.

Without hesitation, the older boy leaned in and placed their lips together, catching Yuuri off guard but he instantly relaxed and smiled into it, closing his eyes with a hum.

They broke apart a moment later and Viktor licked his lips, loving the way Yuuri was slightly flustered and blushing furiously as he brushed away a loose hair.

"I can't decide which is sweeter; you or the donuts." He rested his elbow on the table and placed his chin on the palm of his hand, focusing his attention on the younger boy with a smile.

"Definitely the donuts." Yuuri nodded without hesitation, taking another bite although he was still blushing.

"You don't give yourself enough credit." Viktor pouted, pushing his lower lip out slightly, disappointed that he didn't understand how cute he actually was.

"You give me too much" He mumbled, refusing to make eye contact but the silver haired boy just smirked and leaned closer.

"I can give you more if you like?" The redness in Yuuri's cheeks only grew and he began shaking his head with wide eyes.

"N-no that's okay." 

"Aw, don't you want to hear about how cute your glasses look? Or how adorable your messy hair is? Or how captivating your eyes are?"

"Viktor stop!" He whined, placing his head in his hands as the embarrassment began to set in, not used to being given so many compliments - never mind the fact that they were coming from the boy he'd had a crush on for months.

"What if I don't want to?" He grinned, prodding his arm in an attempt to coax his face from his hands so he could see his rosy cheeks.

"Then I'll leave." Yuuri joked, hoping that it would work but instead he found the older boy giggling softly and he bit his lip.

"That's fine, I'll get a great view of your butt as you go." He winked and Yuuri gasped slightly, eyes widening in surprise as he finally looked at Viktor who had a large smirk plastered on his face.

"Oh my god." His mouth was agape and he began to shuffle on his seat, suddenly becoming very aware of the toned muscle he had made perky from many years of skating, "You're unbelievable."

"What? Am I not allowed to admire my boyfriend's beautiful ass?" He faked a hurt look, placing a hand to his heart and Yuuri just nudged him with his elbow playfully before his eyebrows furrowed and his smile dropped.

"Yuuri? Are you okay?" Suddenly Viktor became serious and looked at the younger boy worriedly, afraid that he'd upset him.

"What? Oh, yeah, yeah I'm fine." He shook his head and offered a small smile but Viktor wasn't convinced and he pressed.

"No, you can tell me." He placed his hand back in Yuuri's and squeezed it encouragingly but he just laughed softly and shook his head.

"It's nothing, honestly."

"Yuuuuuuuuri." Viktor whined with puppy eyes, knowing that he wouldn't be able to say no.

"It's just, it sounds weird that's all." Yuuri admitted, looking at their hands with a fond smile.

"What?" He gave him a puzzled look, unsure of what he was talking about.

"Boyfriend." He clarified, "You're my boyfriend; it's weird."

"Oh," Viktor sighed in relief, before a smile tugged at his lips, "It's a good kind of weird though, right?"

"The best kind of weird." Yuuri assured him, his eyes scrunching slightly as he offered a large grin and studied the Russian's face.

"Viktor Nikiforov is my boyfriend." He whispered in disbelief, wondering how he had gotten so lucky.

-

"But Yuuuuuuuri." Viktor whined, sprawling over the Japanese boy and laying himself over his crossed legs on the bed.

"No Viktor, I mean it." He stood his ground, despite the blue eyes that were staring up at him hopefully.

"Please?" He pouted, reaching his hand up to place it gently on Yuuri's face and stroked his cheek.

"No," he shook his head and broke their eye contact, knowing that if he continued to beg he would end up caving in eventually, "I already told you; the agreement was that I'd kiss you once you've finished this question." 

A pen was laying on Yuuri's bed, hovering over a sheet of unfinished calculus questions that the silver haired boy was due to hand in tomorrow and he had been procrastinating for the last twenty minutes.

"Fine," he huffed, folding his arms before a mischievous smile broke out on his face and he grinned at the younger boy, "you asked for it."

"Asked for wha-"

Yuuri's question was abruptly cut off as Viktor sat up and pounced on him, pushing on his back and straddling him with his hands pinning his wrists down.

"Yuuri..." he began, licking his lips with a large smirk, "are you by any chance...ticklish?"

He didn't answer but the way his eyes widened at the question and tried to quickly push him away was enough clarification and Viktor's eyes glistened.

Suddenly his fingertips were tingling against Yuuri's skin and he was giggling uncontrollably as he shifted on the bed, his face becoming redder by the second.

"Viktor...stop!" Yuuri tried to yell between deep breaths, although his laughing did not help and only encouraged the eighteen year old to keep going, loving the way his boyfriend looked with a grin on his face and the sound of his laughter echoing around the small room.

"What was that, Yuuri? Keep going?" He teased, shrugging his shoulders lightly, "If you insist." 

The attack lasted for just short of five minutes and Yuuri was completely out of breath, tears pooling in his eyes from the sheer amount of giggles that had escaped and he sighed in relief when Viktor finally stopped.

"You're evil." He chuckled, his heart pounding from exhaustion but Viktor just smiled at him, his silver bangs hanging down his face as he put on an innocent face.

"Sorry." The apology had no genuineness behind it and Yuuri pouted, faking a scowl despite the warm feeling in his chest.

The two of them were silent for a moment and Viktor's eyes were intently staring into Yuuri's as he licked his lips and slowly began to lean down, tickling the brunette's face with his hair as he placed a kiss softly on his lips.

Despite his refusal to let Viktor kiss him five minutes ago, Yuuri found himself humming contentedly and he closed his eyes with a smile, relaxing into the warmth as the Russian gently slipped his tongue in his mouth.

He lifted his hands to Yuuri's face and cupped his cheeks, pulling himself closer to deepen the kiss and he received no complaint as the younger boy opened his mouth wider to grant him more access.

The Japanese boy wrapped his own hands in Viktor's silver hair and tugged slightly, resulting in a soft moan from the older skater and he smirked at the sound, pulling him even closer and Viktor adjusted himself on the bed, his knees on either side of Yuuri's waist.

The two of them had been dating for just over two weeks and Yuuri's confidence had grown significantly, although he still became flustered after kissing and he knew that he would be right red as soon as Viktor pulled away.

He didn't want to think about that though and just enjoyed the moment, moving his hands to trail down Viktor's back and happily noticing the way he shivered slightly at the feeling. 

"Yuuuuri." He moaned as the brunette wrapped his legs around his waist and dragged him closer to the bed with a smirk, barely giving him a chance to finish saying his name before he silenced him by pressing their lips back together.

Viktor was the one who had initiated the kiss and yet Yuuri found himself in control and he couldn't say that he was disappointed; wanting to feel closer to him, Yuuri gently tugged on the bottom of Viktor's shirt, a silent request for him to take it off and he understood, briefly pausing their kiss as he pulled it above his head and dropped it on the floor.

Biting his lip, Yuuri took a moment to admire his boyfriend's toned torso, running his warm hands gently over the muscles as Viktor smiled softly down at him.

"Like what you see?" He winked and Yuuri nodded with glistening eyes.

"Very much." 

"Then you'll love the rest." He smirked but made no move to remove his trousers, wanting to wait until Yuuri was definitely ready; the seventeen year old wrapped his arms around his neck and pulled him back down impatiently messily pressing their lips together once again.

There were many thoughts that were going through their heads during their heated make out session, however one that both of them had neglected was the fact that they had not locked the door.

"Yuuri, I'm hom-"

Phichit's cheery greeting stopped suddenly as he entered their dorm to witness a topless Viktor Nikiforov laying on top of his best friend who had messy hair and wide eyes.

"Phichit!" Yuuri scrambled to sit up, pushing Viktor away quickly as his cheeks flushed and his roommate simply looked at him with an amused smile, noticing that his lips were pink and slightly swollen from the excessive kissing he had just done.

"I know that you two are dating now, but if you could preserve the innocence of my eyes, I'd really appreciate it." He chuckled, dumping his bag in the corner of the room before heading into the bathroom to take a shower.

Viktor picked up his shirt from the floor and pulled it on, giggling at his blushing boyfriend and laid back on the bed, picking up the pen and finally beginning to do his homework; after all, he'd gotten his kiss.

-

"Viktor," Yuuri began, looking up at him from his seat on the second-year's sofa; a stupid film playing quietly in the background.

"Yes?" He continued to run his hands through Yuuri's soft black hair as he laid his head in his lap; something that he had grown fond of doing during their month together.

"Are you going home for the holidays?" He asked, wondering what the older boy's plans were for their break and Viktor sighed slightly at the question.

"I doubt it, I think I'm just going to stay in Detroit." 

"Why?" Yuuri's eyes were puzzled and Viktor just shrugged sadly.

"My parents don't exactly approve of the whole 'moving across the world to pursue skating' thing. They wanted me to focus my time on academic things, so if I go home they'll probably just lecture me on how I'm throwing my life away."

Yuuri frowned, his family was completely supportive of his decision to continue skating and he felt an ache in his heart at the fact that Viktor didn't have the same support as he did.

"Oh, I'm sorry." He didn't really know what to say, he knew that Viktor did not want pity and so he didn't push the matter further when the Russian simply shrugged and smiled, brushing it off.

An idea popped into Yuuri's head and he cleared his throat, hoping that he wasn't being too eager and pushing their relationship, "Do you- do you want to - would you like to - I mean-"

"-Yuuri just say it." Viktor chuckled, amused at how nervous he was over something that was probably trivial.

Yuuri just smiled sheepishly and licked his lips, "Do you want to come to Hasetsu with me?"

Viktor's eyes widened at the offer and he didn't know what to say, no one had ever asked him to meet their family; never mind travel to a foreign country he had never been to before to so.

Yuuri took his silence the wrong way and frantically began to dismiss the idea, "You don't have to! It's just I thought I'd offer because I'm going back there and I'd miss you and you're going to be lonely and -"

"-I'd love to." He grinned, placing a kiss to Yuuri's forehead and his brown eyes widened with happiness.

"Really!" He quickly pushed himself into a sitting position and when Viktor nodded he wrapped his arms around him and began giggling excitedly.

"This is going to be so fun!"

-

Viktor could count the number of planes he had been on on one hand, none of them particularly amazing experiences, but as he entered the airport with his hand intertwined with Yuuri's he couldn't help but feel slightly giddy with excitement.

After several hours of checking in, going through security and waiting for the plane to be ready, the two of them finally boarded and found their seats. 

"You nervous?" He asked Yuuri, noticing the way his leg was slightly bouncing and his eyes were glancing around the plane.

"Only a little, I'll be fine when we're actually in the air." He smiled, squeezing Viktor's hand reassuringly and after several minutes everyone was in their seats and the plane was ready to take off.

Despite being on an eighteen hour flight, Viktor didn't want to miss a single second of it; every moment with the brunette was perfect and he found himself wanting to remember every little thing.

It didn't take long for Yuuri to fall asleep, the effects of waking up at three in the morning to catch an early flight catching up with him and his head rested gently on Viktor's shoulder.

The silver haired boy's heart fluttered as he watched his chest softly rise and fall and he felt calm at how peaceful he looked; placing a kiss to the top of his head, he rested his chin on top and closed his own eyes, wrapping an arm around the sleeping Japanese boy.

He had never found it particularly easy to sleep during a flight, so it came as no surprise to him that when he reopened his eyes only thirty minutes had passed and he was still fully conscious. 

Turning his attention to the window, he admired the view from their height and he couldn't wait until they landed in Japan, more than ready to learn about the country Yuuri had grown up in and get to know him even better.

-

Yuuri had of course told his mother that Viktor would be coming with him to Hasetsu, however he had neglected to inform her of their relationship and this fact didn't occur to him until they were walking up the steps to his home with their arms wrapped around each other and suitcases in hand.

It wasn't as though he was hiding his relationship from his family, it was just that he hadn't actually told them that he was gay yet, and he wanted to approach the subject by introducing Viktor as his boyfriend in the same way that he would if he was a girl. He didn't want it to be a big deal and he knew that his family would be accepting no matter what so he didn't feel the need to announce it beforehand.

"Yuurichan!" His mother threw the door open, knowing they had arrived from seeing the taxi that had dropped them off moments before.

"Hi mum!" Yuuri pulled away from Viktor to embrace the shorter woman in a hug, smiling as he inhaled her familiar scent that he had not smelt for months.

"Mum, this is Viktor." As they broke the hug, he gestured over to the taller boy who offered his hand politely.

"Ah, hello Viktor! You must be Yuuri's friend." She smiled, shaking his hand and looking him up and down happily.

"No, mum. Viktor is my boyfriend." Yuuri announced, blushing slightly although he was glad that he had finally told his mother.

However, she misunderstood and just giggled at her son, "Yes, I can see that he is a boy Yuuri."

"No." He laughed, shaking his head slightly before clearing his throat and looking her in the eye, "Viktor and I are dating." 

Her eyes widened in surprise and she had an unreadable expression and and for a moment Yuuri began second guessing that she would be accepting but a moment later a grin broke out on her face and she pulled her hand away from Viktor's, instead pulling him in for a hug.

"Why didn't you say so? Welcome to our home Vicchan, my son certainly has excellent taste."

"Mum," Yuuri giggled, noticing the confusion on Viktor's face, "Viktor can't speak Japanese."

"Oh, forgive me!" She said in English and then repeated her earlier words, causing Viktor's eyes to light up and he winked at Yuuri with a smug smile.

With a roll of his eyes, he grabbed his boyfriend's hand and dragged him into the house to introduce him to the rest of his family.

-

"Wow!" Viktor exclaimed as Mrs Katsuki placed a homemade pork cutlet bowl in front of him before returning to the kitchen and he dug in eagerly, his eyes widening at the explosion of flavours on his tongue.

"Vkusno!" He complimented after swallowing a mouthful, "The one at that restaurant was no where near as good as this." 

Yuuri hummed in agreement, licking his lips as he ate his own with a fond smile, "My mother makes amazing Katsudon."

"Can she adopt me?" He joked and she overheard, poking her head in the room with her eyes scrunched up in a smile.

"I would love to Vicchan, but two sons can't marry." 

Yuuri choked on his food and began coughing, thumping his fist against his chest as he forced it down. When he had finally recovered his cheeks were red and he refused to make eye contact with Viktor, embarrassed of his mother's words but he was simply giggling.

"Amazing." Viktor whispered with a chuckle, a slight shade of pink rising on his own cheeks which he hid by taking a few more bites of his dinner.

He loved Hasetsu already.

-

"Why don't you two go in the hot springs?" Yuuri's father suggested, noticed the slight boredom on their faces after watching television for several hours.

"Yuuri! Can we!" Viktor asked excitedly, remembering how he had been intrigued by the idea since he had first heard about it on their coffee date; he couldn't think of anything better than relaxing in the hot springs after their long flight, especially with his boyfriend.

"Umm, I guess." Yuuri rubbed the back of his neck nervously, knowing that he couldn't deny Viktor the opportunity of experiencing the hot springs and he stood up, holding his hand out for him to take.

Grabbing a couple of towels and robes, he led the two of them through the house and to the changing room.

"Turn around." He instructed, handing him a robe and beginning to peel his shirt off and Viktor faced the wall, beginning to undress himself too.

Once they were both wrapped up but naked underneath, they headed to the springs and Yuuri forced the older boy to look away while he climbed in before doing the same while Viktor joined him. 

The Russian let out a sigh of pleasure as the hot water encased his body and helped his muscles to relax instantly, he rested his head back and closed his eyes, feeling entirely content.

Yuuri, however, was used to the feeling of the hot springs and hardly noticed the warmth that it brought, but he was definitely not used to being so close to a very naked Viktor Nikiforov and he felt himself blushing as he thought about it.

There was no need for him to be embarrassed, Viktor was his boyfriend after all but he couldn't help it and found himself covering his face with his hands and turning away slightly.

Strong arms suddenly wrapped around Yuuri's small torso and pulled him closer and a gasp escaped his lips as he found himself sitting against Viktor's chest; the warmth of his body combined with the water sent shivers down his spine and he shuddered, despite the smirk that was playing on his lips.

Uncharacteristically, he slowly moved a hand under the water and gripped Viktor's thigh, rubbing it with his thumb and smiling as he heard the silver haired boy moan slightly and tighten his grip on his waist. 

"Yuuri..."Viktor warned, his eyes narrowing as he bit his lip and shook his head at the brown eyed boy who was looking at him innocently.

"Viktor." He mocked, sticking his tongue out childishly as he splashed him slightly, pulling away from his grip and sitting on the other side of the onsen.

"Yuuuuuri." He whined, pouting at him but he just rolled his eyes and dismissed his complaints with a wave of his hand.

"Shhhh, just enjoy the springs." He closed his eyes and smiled happily as he relaxed in the water; with a sigh Viktor did the same, making the most of the experience. 

-

"I'm sorry there is not a spare guest bedroom." Yuuri's sister apologised to Viktor as she handed him a clean pair of complimentary pyjamas.

"Although I doubt you'll be doing much sleeping." She mumbled in Japanese and Yuuri scowled at her, shaking his head frantically in embarrassment.

"Yuuri?" He asked, puzzled by the unfamiliar language, "What does that mean?"

"She was just asking what you'd like for breakfast." He lied smoothly, offering a smile and Viktor bowed politely to Mari.

"I'll have whatever Yuuri is having, thank you." 

"Uhh, okay." She chuckled before shooing them away to her brother's room and continuing to fold pyjamas for the other guests.

"I'm excited." Viktor giggled as they were walking up the stairs and Yuuri sent him a confused look, "I get to see your room!"

"It's not that interesting." He chuckled as he opened the door, beginning to straighten everything out and tidy anything that looked slightly out of place.

"What are these Yuuri? Inspirational quotes?" Viktor questioned, running his hands over the posters on his wall which were covered in Japanese characters that he couldn't understand.

"Y-yeah." He blushed, running a hand through his hair nervously, "My mum wanted to encourage me to keep skating so she bought me them and stuck them on my wall one day while I was at practise; I never took them down."

"That's so cute." He grinned, turning his attention to the seventeen year old rather than studying the indecipherable Kanji in front of him, "What do they say?"

"Nothing." He shook his head, a small smile playing on his lips to hide the cheesiness of their contents.

"Tell me," he whispered, walking over to Yuuri and taking his hand, placing a kiss on his knuckles, "I need inspiration."

"Okay, okay." Yuuri smiled, standing from the bed and walking over to the closest poster, running his finger over each symbol as he spoke, "This one says 'There'll be no more darkness when you believe in yourself; you're unstoppable.'"

"Oh." Viktor smiled, amused at how adorable he was and Yuuri continued, moving to the adjacent piece of paper pinned to his wall.

"This one says 'Yuuri Katsuki is a 10/10 skater.'" He joked, and Viktor stood behind him, wrapping his arms around his waist and resting his chin on Yuuri's shoulder.

"What about the other one?" He asked, motioning to a blue one in the corner of the room.

"Oh, that one says..." Yuuri squinted slightly, acting as though he was concentrating on trying to read it from a few metres away, when in reality he could see it fine with his glasses, "Viktor Nikiforov is clingy as fuck."

He gasped and gripped Yuuri tighter, a scandalised look on his face, "I have no idea what you're talking about!"

He quickly spun him round in his arms so that they were face to face and began to pepper his face with kisses, pulling him closer whenever he tried to push away and the two of them were giggling uncontrollably as they suddenly lost their balance and landed clumsily in a heap on the wooden floor.

-

"Good morning, sleepy" Viktor greeted Yuuri, a cup of coffee in his hand made exactly how his boyfriend liked it by the local cafe.

The Japanese boy had gotten up early that morning and headed to the ice castle, leaving a note on the pillow beside Viktor for him to read once he woke up to meet him there - with directions on how to actually get there.

"Hello!" He grinned, lively and awake from his early morning exercise as he skated over and took the steaming cup from him, "Thank you so much!"

"Anything for you." He grinned, "Although it comes with a price."

Yuuri assumed that he meant he just wanted him to pay him back later but when he saw the smirk on his face and the way his head was tilted slightly to the side, he understood and softly kissed him before pulling away and taking a few gulps of his coffee.

"So what're you working on?" He asked, leaning against the barrier with his chin resting on his hand.

"Nothing in particular." He shrugged, holding the hot up close to him to try and take in as much warmth as possible. 

"We should pair skate!" Viktor explained suddenly, his eyes full of excitement like those of a small child and Yuuri just gave him a quizzical look.

"What? That takes years of practise, we can't just randomly pair skate." He shook his head with a laugh, dismissing the idea as he took another sip.

Viktor sat on the bench and began to lace up the skates he had brought with him, ignoring the brunette's response.

As soon as his cup was empty, Viktor took it from him, throwing it in the nearby bin before removing his skate guards and stepping onto the ice.

"Look, just hold my hand." He instructed, outstretching his arm and waiting for Yuuri's fingers to wrap around his own. Soon enough he felt the familiar feeling of his smaller hands wrapped around his own and he began to skate, pulling him alongside and telling him to mirror his movements.

He knew that Yuuri was a very fast learner, but it still surprised him at how quickly he could copy the way he moved his body and memorise his steps and jumps.

After an hour of this, Viktor suggested doing a lift, but of course the brunette refused, saying that they had no experience and without a coach it was dangerous.

"I'll be the coach." Viktor smirked, placing his hands on Yuuri's waist and the younger boy swallowed, beginning to consider it - if it would make the Russian boy happy he would at least think about it. 

"Don't you trust me?" He pouted, his blue eyes drawing him in and piercing into him in a way that made Yuuri's heart twist.

"Of course I trust you." He placed a hand on his cheek, gently stroking it with his thumb and the older skater looked at him hopefully.

"Good." He grinned, grabbing Yuuri's hands and placing them on his shoulders, "Hold on." 

He placed his own hands just below Yuuri's arms and slowly but effortlessly lifted him a couple of inches from the ice.

"See? I told you that it would be fine." 

"Viktor, I'm hardly even off the ice, I'm not sure if you can even class this as a lift." He chuckled, glancing at his skates that were practically touching the cold surface and Viktor sighed sadly, putting him back down. 

"Always ruining my fun." He tutted playfully, although he knew he was right; he just didn't want either of them getting hurt for doing something irresponsible.

"I'll make it up to you later." He winked and Viktor's heart pounded as his breath hitched, caught off guard by his flirting.

-

As they were finally leaving the ice rink and heading back to the house, Yuuri pulled out his phone and checked his text messages, quickly typing a response before slipping it back in his pocket.

"That was my mum, she asked me if I can pick some things up from the shop on the way home, and asked if you could help her with a couple of things so I'll just meet you back there, it'll only take me ten minutes or so." He told him, pulling his hand away gently as they reached the junction he needed to turn at.

"Aww, okay." He was disappointed that he had to be separated, but shook his head at himself, he was going to see him in ten minutes, "Bye, love you."

Yuuri froze.

It took a moment for him to realise what he had said and the way that the brown eyed boy was staring at him, unblinking was making his heart pound nervously.

"What? You...you love me?" His eyebrows were pulled together and Viktor couldn't tell what his emotions were so he calmly tried to explain, not wanting to ruin their relationship with a premature love declaration.

"I-erm, yeah...you don't need to say it back because I know that it's only been a month or so, which isn't long but...yeah. I love you." He sheepishly looked up at Yuuri who was still blinking, trying to process those three little words and he cringed, thinking that he should've waited a little longer before admitting it. He hadn't even meant to, it just slipped out unintentionally, but there was no use trying to cover it up because he did in fact love him.

His soft brown eyes glistened as tears began to prick within them and he threw himself at Viktor, wrapping his arms around him tightly and burying his head in his chest as an overjoyed sob escaped his lips.

"I love you too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're reading this you made it to the end of my story (wooo!) so thank you so much for reading!!! <3
> 
> I'm going to sleep now so I'll check for errors/typos in the morning I just wanted to get this published for all you lovely people ASAP :)

**Author's Note:**

> come say hi!  
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